Among the River Pirates

Chapter VI · A Strange Story

Chapter VI of Among the River Pirates, “A Strange Story,” is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Percy Keese Fitzhugh • Curated US English Learning Edition

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English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

“Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz!

I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

What’s the matter, huh?”

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter VI Reading 1/17

Among the River Pirates Percy Keese Fitzhugh

Chapter VI

A Strange Story

Chapter VI of Among the River Pirates, “A Strange Story,” is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence. “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh? Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz! I never seen you act so funny before in my life. What’s the matter, huh?”

Among the River Pirates

Chapter VI · A Strange Story

Chapter VI of Among the River Pirates, “A Strange Story,” is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/17 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

Line 2

“Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

Line 3

Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz!

Line 4

I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

/aɪ ˈnevər siːn juː ækt soʊ ˈfʌni bɪˈfɔːr ɪn maɪ laɪf/

Line 5

What’s the matter, huh?”

Learner Dictionary

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.

cranky adjective US /ˈkræŋki/

(used of boats) inclined to heel over easily under sail

From this reading “Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz!”

Flint noun US /flɪnt/

a hard kind of stone; a form of silica more opaque than chalcedony

From this reading ““Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?”

gee noun US /dʒiː/

a unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity; used to indicate the force to which a body is subjected when it is accelerated

From this reading ““Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?”

halt verb US /hɔːlt/

cause to stop

From this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

ignoring verb US /ˌɪɡˈnɔːrɪŋ/

-ing form of “ignore” — refuse to acknowledge

From this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

Pop verb US /pɑːp/

bulge outward

From this reading ““Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?”

tense noun US /tens/

a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time

From this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

whiz noun US /wɪz/

someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

motor boat noun + noun

In this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

tense silence noun + noun

In this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

push off verb + particle

In this reading “Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz!”

got a chance verb + article + noun counted as “get … chance”

shouts from verb + particle counted as “shout from”

In this reading “The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.”

All words in this reading · 66

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz!

actverbUS /ækt/

perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

anywayadverbUS /ˈeniweɪ/

used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

Apollyon

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

BecauseconjunctionUS /bɪˈkɔːz/

for the reason that

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

behindprepositionUS /bɪˈhaɪnd/

at or toward the back of something

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

betweenprepositionUS /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

boatnounUS /boʊt/

a small vessel for travel on water

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

breakverbUS /breɪk/

terminate

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

chancenounUS /tʃæns/

a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

crankyadjectiveUS /ˈkræŋki/

(used of boats) inclined to heel over easily under sail

daredverbUS /derd/

past form of “dare” — take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

decknounUS /dek/

any of various platforms built into a vessel

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

didn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

eitherdeterminerUS /ˈiːðər/

one or the other of two

evenadjectiveUS /ˈiːvɪn/

divisible by two

faradverbUS /fɑːr/

to a considerable degree; very much

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

fearfullyadverb

in fear

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

FlintnounUS /flɪnt/

a hard kind of stone; a form of silica more opaque than chalcedony

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

funnyadjectiveUS /ˈfʌni/

arousing or provoking laughter

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

GeenounUS /dʒiː/

a unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity; used to indicate the force to which a body is subjected when it is accelerated

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

goodnight

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

gotverbUS /ɡɑːt/

inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

haltverbUS /hɔːlt/

cause to stop

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

happenedverbUS /ˈhæpənd/

past form of “happen” — come to pass

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

huh

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

ignoringverbUS /ˌɪɡˈnɔːrɪŋ/

-ing form of “ignore” — refuse to acknowledge

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/

belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

leftnounUS /left/

location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

lifenounUS /laɪf/

a characteristic state or mode of living

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

littleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

matenounUS /meɪt/

the officer below the master on a commercial ship

matternounUS /ˈmætər/

a vaguely specified concern

From this reading What’s the matter, huh?”

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

motornounUS /ˈmoʊtər/

machine that converts other forms of energy into mechanical energy and so imparts motion

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

MrnounUS /ˈmɪstər/

a form of address for a man

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

offadverbUS /ɔːf/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

PopverbUS /pɑːp/

bulge outward

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

pushverbUS /pʊʃ/

move with force

sayverbUS /seɪ/

express in words

seenverbUS /siːn/

inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

From this reading I never seen you act so funny before in my life.

shoutsnounUS /ʃaʊts/

plural of “shout” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

silencenounUS /ˈsaɪ.ləns/

Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

Skippy

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

stammered

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

tensenounUS /tens/

a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense silence.

toldverbUS /toʊld/

inflected form of “tell” — express in words

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

What's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading What’s the matter, huh?”

whiznounUS /wɪz/

someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading “Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh?

Chapter 6 of Among the River Pirates by Percy Keese Fitzhugh holds 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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.

What does chapter 6 of Among the River Pirates contain?

Chapter 6 holds 89 sentences of Among the River Pirates, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 6 of Among the River Pirates by Percy Keese Fitzhugh exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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.

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Work through the 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 6 can be played aloud in United States English.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #53695, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 218 minutes of reading across 524 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Chapter VI · A Strange Story

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