Chapter 4 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AL TO THE RESCUE. "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley. "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair. "Read this." The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
Chapter 4 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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.
United States author whose works were frequently autobiographical (1876-1941)
From this reading “"Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.”
steadiness of mind under stress
From this reading “"That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.”
a collection of things that have been combined; an assemblage of separate parts or qualities
From this reading “"That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.”
third-person singular of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading “The note which he handed his companion read as follows:”
having or involving the use of hands
From this reading “The note which he handed his companion read as follows:”
someone who controls resources and expenditures
From this reading “"That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.”
free from harm or evil
From this reading “AL TO THE RESCUE.”
uttered in a shrill scream as of pain or terror
From this reading “"Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.”
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 “"Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.”
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.
a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite
From this reading AL TO THE RESCUE.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
United States author whose works were frequently autobiographical (1876-1941)
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
steadiness of mind under stress
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
a collection of things that have been combined; an assemblage of separate parts or qualities
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
a state in which all hope is lost or absent
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
third-person singular of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
having or involving the use of hands
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
someone who controls resources and expenditures
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
a brief written record
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
participate in games or sport
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading "Read this."
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
free from harm or evil
From this reading AL TO THE RESCUE.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
uttered in a shrill scream as of pain or terror
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AL TO THE RESCUE.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Read this."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading AL TO THE RESCUE.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The note which he handed his companion read as follows:
in the company of; together with
From this reading "That's what I said--Mrs. Anderson won't play," replied the manager of the combination, with the calmness of despair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Mrs. Anderson won't play?" almost shrieked Mr. Perley.
Chapter 4 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe holds 92 sentences, grouped into 19 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 4 holds 92 sentences of Ahead of the Show, unabridged, divided into 19 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 92 sentences, grouped into 19 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 19 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 19 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 4 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 Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3491 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39454 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39454, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 290 minutes of reading across 699 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ahead of the Show section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of Ahead of the Show 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 Ahead of the Show, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
