Chapter 16 of Ancestors: A Novel is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of Ancestors: A Novel is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Finally Isabel spoke. "I won't marry you," she said. "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement. We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded. It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
Chapter 16 of Ancestors: A Novel is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
make known; make an announcement
From this reading “"But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.”
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading “We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.”
plural of “end” — either extremity of something that has length
From this reading “"But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.”
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading “"But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.”
past form of “postpone” — hold back to a later time
From this reading “It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.”
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading “"But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.”
plural of “study” — a detailed critical inspection
From this reading “We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.”
two times
From this reading “It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.”
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.
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.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
make known; make an announcement
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
plural of “end” — either extremity of something that has length
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
descend in free fall under the influence of gravity
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
after an unspecified period of time or an especially long delay
From this reading Finally Isabel spoke.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Finally Isabel spoke.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
the collection of rules imposed by authority
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
take in marriage
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
on one occasion
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
past form of “postpone” — hold back to a later time
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading Finally Isabel spoke.
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
plural of “study” — a detailed critical inspection
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
two times
From this reading It can be postponed once or twice on other pretexts, then fall through.
up to a particular time
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "But all ends will be served if we announce an engagement.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I won't marry you," she said.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading We can state that we think it best not to marry until your law studies are concluded.
Chapter 16 of Ancestors: A Novel by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 16 holds 403 sentences of Ancestors: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of Ancestors: A Novel by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 16 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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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ancestors: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Ancestors: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
