Chapter 4 of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us. The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now. A maelstrom. A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away. But we thought we understood the mystery.
Chapter 4 of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/41 · 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.
outer bark of the cork oak; used for stoppers for bottles etc.
From this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
deprive of strength or efficiency; make useless or worthless
A powerful whirlpool in the sea or a river; a state of confused turmoil.
From this reading “A maelstrom.”
past form of “menace” — pose a threat to; present a danger to
From this reading “The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.”
plural of “portal” — a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading “_Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.”
a heavy rain
From this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
the gymnastic moves of an acrobat
From this reading “The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.”
past form of “whirl” — turn in a twisting or spinning motion
From this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
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 “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
the middle or central part or point
In this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
In this reading “_Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.”
In this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
reach the point where one should be after a delay
In this reading “A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A maelstrom.
(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 The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
plural of “bit” — a small piece or quantity of something
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But we thought we understood the mystery.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
outer bark of the cork oak; used for stoppers for bottles etc.
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
deprive of strength or efficiency; make useless or worthless
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
plural of “event” — something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
A powerful whirlpool in the sea or a river; a state of confused turmoil.
From this reading A maelstrom.
past form of “menace” — pose a threat to; present a danger to
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
the location of something surrounded by other things
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
plural of “portal” — a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
get something; come into possession of
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
inflected form of “swing” — move in a curve or arc, usually with the intent of hitting
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading But we thought we understood the mystery.
very small
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
a heavy rain
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
the gymnastic moves of an acrobat
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
fully apprehended as to purport or meaning or explanation
From this reading But we thought we understood the mystery.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
past form of “whirl” — turn in a twisting or spinning motion
From this reading A torrent in the midst of which we were caught up like tiny bits of cork and whirled away.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading _Tugh, the Cripple_ The portals of this mystery had swung wide to receive us.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading The tumbling events which menaced all our world of 1935 were upon us now.
Chapter 4 of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 by Various holds 208 sentences, grouped into 42 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 4 holds 208 sentences of Astounding Stories, April, 1931, unabridged, divided into 42 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 by Various exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 208 sentences, grouped into 42 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 42 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 42 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 4 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 Astounding Stories, April, 1931 by Various on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5931 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30452 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30452, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 494 minutes of reading across 1187 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Astounding Stories, April, 1931 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Astounding Stories, April, 1931 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 Astounding Stories, April, 1931, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
