Chapter 32 of Alec Forbes of Howglen is here in full — 318 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXII
Chapter 32 of Alec Forbes of Howglen is here in full — 318 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend. He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger. Had he not himself in his own hands? He was not fond of whisky. He could take it or leave it.
Chapter 32 of Alec Forbes of Howglen is here in full — 318 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/63 · 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.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.”
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading “He was not fond of whisky.”
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading “He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.”
A large hole in the ground, or an abyss of darkness and peril.
From this reading “It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.”
plural of “render” — a substance similar to stucco but exclusively applied to masonry walls
From this reading “It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.”
dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises
From this reading “It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.”
a message informing of danger
From this reading “It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.”
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading “He was not fond of whisky.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
Having no one else present.
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading He could take it or leave it.
the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
descend in free fall under the influence of gravity
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading He was not fond of whisky.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Had he not himself in his own hands?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Had he not himself in his own hands?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Had he not himself in his own hands?
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
go away from a place
From this reading He could take it or leave it.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Had he not himself in his own hands?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading He could take it or leave it.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading Had he not himself in his own hands?
A large hole in the ground, or an abyss of darkness and peril.
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
plural of “render” — a substance similar to stucco but exclusively applied to masonry walls
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading He had listened to the story alone; he had never felt the warning: he had never felt the danger.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
carry out
From this reading He could take it or leave it.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
a message informing of danger
From this reading It may appear strange to some of my renders that Alec should fall into this pit immediately upon the solemn warning of his friend.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was not fond of whisky.
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading He was not fond of whisky.
Chapter 32 of Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald holds 318 sentences, grouped into 64 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 32 holds 318 sentences of Alec Forbes of Howglen, unabridged, divided into 64 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 32 of Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 318 sentences, grouped into 64 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 64 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 64 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 32 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.
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Yes. All 10614 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18810 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
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About 600 minutes of reading across 2123 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Alec Forbes of Howglen, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
