Chapter 1 of A Traitor in London is here in full — 235 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of A Traitor in London is here in full — 235 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS. "It's an infernal shame!" "I call it common sense!" "Call it what you please, Malet. I deny your right to keep back my money."
Chapter 1 of A Traitor in London is here in full — 235 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/47 · 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.
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading “"I call it common sense!"”
(Roman mythology) god of love; counterpart of Greek Eros
From this reading “CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.”
declare untrue; contradict
From this reading “I deny your right to keep back my money."”
characteristic of or resembling Hell
From this reading “"It's an infernal shame!"”
indicating the most important performer or role
From this reading “CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.”
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “"Call it what you please, Malet.”
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading “"It's an infernal shame!"”
the section of an orchestra that plays stringed instruments
From this reading “CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.”
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.
sound practical judgment
In this reading “"I call it common sense!"”
secure and keep for possible future use or application
In this reading “I deny your right to keep back my money."”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "It's an infernal shame!"
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading "I call it common sense!"
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading "I call it common sense!"
(Roman mythology) god of love; counterpart of Greek Eros
From this reading CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.
declare untrue; contradict
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I call it common sense!"
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.
characteristic of or resembling Hell
From this reading "It's an infernal shame!"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I call it common sense!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It's an infernal shame!"
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
indicating the most important performer or role
From this reading CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Call it what you please, Malet.
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading "Call it what you please, Malet.
precisely, exactly
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
a general conscious awareness
From this reading "I call it common sense!"
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading "It's an infernal shame!"
the section of an orchestra that plays stringed instruments
From this reading CUPID IN LEADING STRINGS.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Call it what you please, Malet.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Call it what you please, Malet.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I deny your right to keep back my money."
Chapter 1 of A Traitor in London by Fergus Hume holds 235 sentences, grouped into 47 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 1 holds 235 sentences of A Traitor in London, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of A Traitor in London by Fergus Hume exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 235 sentences, grouped into 47 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 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 47 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 1 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 Traitor in London by Fergus Hume on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6992 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56081 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56081, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 582 minutes of reading across 1399 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Traitor in London section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of A Traitor in London 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 Traitor in London, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
