Chapter 20 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE LOCKET. Al started. Could Miss March seriously mean what she said? "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?" "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
Chapter 20 of Ahead of the Show is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
marked by assurance; exhibiting confidence
From this reading “"No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"”
in a serious manner
From this reading “"You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"”
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading “"You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"”
a small ornamental case; usually contains a picture or a lock of hair and is worn on a necklace
From this reading “THE LOCKET.”
march in a procession
From this reading “Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?”
being connected either logically or causally or by shared characteristics
From this reading “"No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"”
concerned with religion or religious purposes
From this reading “"You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"”
in a serious manner
From this reading “Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?”
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 “"You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"”
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 "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite
From this reading Al started.
marked by assurance; exhibiting confidence
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
in a serious manner
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
a young female
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
a small ornamental case; usually contains a picture or a lock of hair and is worn on a necklace
From this reading THE LOCKET.
march in a procession
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
not any; not one
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
being connected either logically or causally or by shared characteristics
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
concerned with religion or religious purposes
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
in a serious manner
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Al started.
the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE LOCKET.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "No, no," Al assured her, "but what ground have you for thinking that we may be related?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Could Miss March seriously mean what she said?
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You surely do not think," the girl said, earnestly, "that I would jest on a subject so sacred?"
Chapter 20 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe holds 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 20 holds 104 sentences of Ahead of the Show, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Ahead of the Show by Fred Thorpe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 20 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.
