Chapter 19 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIX
Chapter 19 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT. "He is here!" With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room. "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced. Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
Chapter 19 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
the state or quality of being recognized or acknowledged
From this reading “A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT.”
declared publicly; made widely known
From this reading “"I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.”
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading “Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.”
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading “With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.”
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading “"I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.”
so remarkably different or sudden as to cause momentary shock or alarm
From this reading “A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT.”
of or relating to the theater
From this reading “With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.”
someone who visits
From this reading “Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.”
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 “With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.”
In this reading “Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.”
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 A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
the state or quality of being recognized or acknowledged
From this reading A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
declared publicly; made widely known
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
large or relatively large in number or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He is here!"
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "He is here!"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "He is here!"
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
march in a procession
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "I am Mr. Marmaduke Merry," he announced.
the time that has elapsed
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
past form of “push” — move with force
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
so remarkably different or sudden as to cause momentary shock or alarm
From this reading A STARTLING ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
of or relating to the theater
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
someone who visits
From this reading Both Al and Miss March gazed with considerable curiosity and interest at the visitor.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With this theatrical exclamation, a man pushed his way past the servant and entered the room.
Chapter 19 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe holds 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 19 holds 116 sentences of Ahead of the Show, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 19 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 19 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.
