Chapter 1 of Antennae is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Antennae is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes. With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth. When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again. He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes. There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
Chapter 1 of Antennae is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
be in charge of, act on, or dispose of
From this reading “With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.”
having no limits or boundaries in time or space or extent or magnitude
From this reading “With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.”
fasten with a lock
From this reading “When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.”
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading “There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.”
inflected form of “permit” — consent to, give permission
From this reading “When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.”
a particular situation
From this reading “Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.”
a wide scarf worn about their shoulders by women
From this reading “Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.”
a large entrance or reception room or area
From this reading “He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.”
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 “There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.”
exterior door (at the entrance) at the front of a building
In this reading “With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.”
In this reading “With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.”
In this reading “He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.”
put clothing on one's body
In this reading “He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.”
In this reading “With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.”
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 When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
anew
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
in addition
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
a social unit living together
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
be in charge of, act on, or dispose of
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
having no limits or boundaries in time or space or extent or magnitude
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
fasten with a lock
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
inflected form of “permit” — consent to, give permission
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
compacted by ironing
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.
a particular situation
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
a wide scarf worn about their shoulders by women
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
a large entrance or reception room or area
From this reading He sat down in the vestibule to put on his shoes.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading There was also an outer door, closed when the family went to bed.
at the time that
From this reading When one pressed down a catch in the lock, it permitted the outside handle to turn; and one could come in again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Wilfred Pell stole down-stairs carrying his shoes.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With infinite care he turned the handle of the front door, his heart in his mouth.
Chapter 1 of Antennae by Hulbert Footner holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 1 holds 422 sentences of Antennae, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Antennae by Hulbert Footner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 1 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 Antennae by Hulbert Footner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10170 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #69701 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #69701, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2034 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Antennae section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Antennae 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 Antennae, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
