Chapter 3 of Annihilation is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Annihilation is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?” “No, none. It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.” Orbit’s hands clenched slightly. “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
Chapter 3 of Annihilation is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
closed or squeezed together tightly
From this reading “Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.”
accept an excuse for
From this reading “THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?””
English poet (born in 1930)
From this reading ““I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!”
a high ranking police officer
From this reading “THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?””
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading “THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?””
to a small degree or extent
From this reading “Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.”
not usual or common or ordinary
From this reading “It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.””
nonexistent
From this reading “THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?””
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 “THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?””
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 THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
closed or squeezed together tightly
From this reading Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
accept an excuse for
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
destroyed or killed
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
English poet (born in 1930)
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
a high ranking police officer
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
not any; not one
From this reading “No, none.
not one, and not any
From this reading “No, none.
the organ of smell and entrance to the respiratory tract; the prominent part of the face of man or other mammals
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
to a small degree or extent
From this reading Orbit’s hands clenched slightly.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “I cannot believe that poor Hughes is really gone!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
in or at that place or location
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
not usual or common or ordinary
From this reading It was not unusual and I thought nothing of it.”
nonexistent
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading THE NOSE OF DENNIS RIORDAN There was a second pause and then the inspector asked: “Did he give you any excuse for wanting an evening out to-night?”
Chapter 3 of Annihilation by Isabel Ostrander holds 183 sentences, grouped into 37 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 3 holds 183 sentences of Annihilation, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Annihilation by Isabel Ostrander exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 183 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 3 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 Annihilation by Isabel Ostrander on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5459 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #72948 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #72948, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 454 minutes of reading across 1092 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Annihilation section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Annihilation 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 Annihilation, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
