Chapter 17 of A Trace of Memory is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of A Trace of Memory is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle. Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities. It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth. Where would I have gone if I had been a cat? And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
Chapter 17 of A Trace of Memory is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/57 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
-ing form of “chalk” — write, draw, or trace with chalk
From this reading “For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.”
any amazing or wonderful occurrence
From this reading “For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.”
a close friend who accompanies his buddies in their activities
From this reading “And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?”
a light shade of red
From this reading “It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.”
plural of “probability” — a measure of how likely it is that some event will occur; a number expressing the ratio of favorable cases to the whole number of cases possible
From this reading “Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.”
a state of difficulty that needs to be resolved
From this reading “Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.”
usually paved outdoor area adjoining a residence
From this reading “It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.”
past form of “toy” — behave carelessly or indifferently
From this reading “For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.”
In this reading “It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.”
In this reading “And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading Where would I have gone if I had been a cat?
-ing form of “chalk” — write, draw, or trace with chalk
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
an institution created to conduct business
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
recognizable; marked
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
set up or found
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
destroyed or killed
From this reading Where would I have gone if I had been a cat?
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Where would I have gone if I had been a cat?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Where would I have gone if I had been a cat?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
and nothing more
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
any amazing or wonderful occurrence
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
a close friend who accompanies his buddies in their activities
From this reading And how could I have found me--my old pal from earth?
having a margin incised almost to the base so as to create distinct divisions or lobes
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
a light shade of red
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
plural of “probability” — a measure of how likely it is that some event will occur; a number expressing the ratio of favorable cases to the whole number of cases possible
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
a state of difficulty that needs to be resolved
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
usually paved outdoor area adjoining a residence
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
past form of “toy” — behave carelessly or indifferently
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading It had been seven months since we had parted company on the pink terrace at Okk-Hamiloth.
in or at the place that
From this reading Where would I have gone if I had been a cat?
during the time that
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
in the company of; together with
From this reading For a while I toyed with the idea of just chalking it up as a miracle.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Then I decided it would be a nice problem in probabilities.
Chapter 17 of A Trace of Memory by Keith Laumer holds 289 sentences, grouped into 58 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 17 holds 289 sentences of A Trace of Memory, unabridged, divided into 58 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of A Trace of Memory by Keith Laumer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 289 sentences, grouped into 58 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 58 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 58 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 17 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading A Trace of Memory by Keith Laumer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5506 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51712 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51712, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 458 minutes of reading across 1102 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Trace of Memory section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of A Trace of Memory to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in A Trace of Memory, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
