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Arrowsmith
Arrowsmith

Chapter XVIII

Chapter 18 of Arrowsmith is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Arrowsmith
Context Illustration Reading 1/32 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.
When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.
It did.
It almost ruined his private practise.
There was never an official appointment.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Arrowsmith

Chapter XVIII

Chapter 18 of Arrowsmith is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/32 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.
Line 2
When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.
Line 3
It did.
/ɪt dɪd/
Line 4
It almost ruined his private practise.
/ɪt ˈɔːlmoʊst ˈruːənd hɪz ˈpraɪvət ˈpræktɪs/
Line 5
There was never an official appointment.
/ðer wɑːz ˈnevər æn əˈfɪʃəl əˈpɔɪntmənt/

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.

appointment noun US /əˈpɔɪntmənt/

the act of putting a person into a non-elective position

From this reading “There was never an official appointment.”

assuring adjective US /əˈʃʊrɪŋ/

giving confidence

From this reading “When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.”

benevolence noun US /bəˈnev.əl.əns/

The quality of being well meaning; kindness and generosity. (Lòng nhân ái, sự nhân từ độ lượng.)

From this reading “When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.”

Grove noun US /ɡroʊv/

a small growth of trees without underbrush

From this reading “I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.”

official adjective US /əˈfɪʃəl/

having official authority or sanction

From this reading “There was never an official appointment.”

practise verb US /ˈpræktɪs/

engage in a rehearsal

From this reading “When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.”

ruined adjective US /ˈruːənd/

destroyed physically or morally

From this reading “It almost ruined his private practise.”

Superintendent noun US /ˌsuːpərənˈtendənt/

a person who directs and manages an organization

From this reading “I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.”

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.

spare time verb + noun

time available for hobbies and other activities that you enjoy

In this reading “I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.”

All words in this reading · 60

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 When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

acceptedadjectiveUS /ækˈseptɪd/

generally approved or compelling recognition

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

actedverbUS /ˈæktɪd/

past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

almostadverbUS /ˈɔːlmoʊst/

(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but

From this reading It almost ruined his private practise.

andeterminerUS /æn/

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

From this reading There was never an official appointment.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

appointmentnounUS /əˈpɔɪntmənt/

the act of putting a person into a non-elective position

From this reading There was never an official appointment.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

assuringadjectiveUS /əˈʃʊrɪŋ/

giving confidence

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

benevolencenounUS /bəˈnev.əl.əns/

The quality of being well meaning; kindness and generosity. (Lòng nhân ái, sự nhân từ độ lượng.)

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

burstverbUS /bɜːrst/

come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

CountynounUS /ˈkaʊnti/

(United Kingdom) a region created by territorial division for the purpose of local government

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

Crynssen

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

doauxiliary verbUS /duː/

used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

Dr

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

effectnounUS /ɪˈfekt/

a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

greatadjectiveUS /ɡreɪt/

relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

greatlyadverbUS /ˈɡreɪtli/

to an extraordinary extent or degree

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

GrovenounUS /ɡroʊv/

a small growth of trees without underbrush

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

halfadjectiveUS /hæf/

consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

HealthnounUS /helθ/

a healthy state of wellbeing free from disease

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

interestnounUS /ˈɪntrəst/

a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

MartinnounUS /ˈmɑːrtən/

French bishop who is a patron saint of France (died in 397)

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading There was never an official appointment.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

offeredverbUS /ˈɔːfərd/

past form of “offer” — make available or accessible, provide or furnish

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

officenounUS /ˈɔːfɪs/

place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

officialadjectiveUS /əˈfɪʃəl/

having official authority or sanction

From this reading There was never an official appointment.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

paidadjectiveUS /peɪd/

marked by the reception of pay

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

payverbUS /peɪ/

give money, usually in exchange for goods or services

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

practiseverbUS /ˈpræktɪs/

engage in a rehearsal

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

privateadjectiveUS /ˈpraɪvət/

confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

ruinedadjectiveUS /ˈruːənd/

destroyed physically or morally

From this reading It almost ruined his private practise.

spareverbUS /sper/

refrain from harming

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

SuperintendentnounUS /ˌsuːpərənˈtendənt/

a person who directs and manages an organization

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading There was never an official appointment.

timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

Vanderheide's

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

welladverbUS /wel/

(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

Woestijne

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

From this reading I Dr. Woestijne of Vanderheide’s Grove acted in spare time as Superintendent of Health for Crynssen County, but the office was not well paid and it did not greatly interest him.

workverbUS /wɜːrk/

exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading When Martin burst in and offered to do all the work for half the pay, Woestijne accepted with benevolence, assuring him that it would have a great effect on his private practise.

Chapter 18 of Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis holds 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 18 of Arrowsmith contain?

Chapter 18 holds 161 sentences of Arrowsmith, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 18 of Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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.

How do I study chapter 18 of Arrowsmith?

Work through the 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 33 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.

Can chapter 18 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 18 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.

Questions about reading Arrowsmith

Common questions about reading Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Arrowsmith?

Yes. All 9353 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #70875 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Arrowsmith is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #70875, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Arrowsmith take to read?

About 600 minutes of reading across 1871 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Arrowsmith section by section

How to work through Arrowsmith section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 39 chapters of Arrowsmith to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Arrowsmith

Words and structures a reader meets early in Arrowsmith, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Driver
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Arrowsmith; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Wagon
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Arrowsmith; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Swaying
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Arrowsmith; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Through
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Arrowsmith; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.