Chapter 5 of At the Black Rocks is here in full — 455 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of At the Black Rocks is here in full — 455 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Should you?" replied the keeper. "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other. It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there." The two boats now commenced their journey. The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
Chapter 5 of At the Black Rocks is here in full — 455 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/91 · 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.
plural of “boat” — a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading “"Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.”
past form of “commence” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “The two boats now commenced their journey.”
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading “"Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.”
someone in charge of other people
From this reading “"Should you?" replied the keeper.”
a tower with a light that gives warning of shoals to passing ships
From this reading “The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.”
be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading “"Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.”
an arrangement of objects or people side by side in a line
From this reading “It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."”
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading “"Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.”
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 “It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."”
In this reading “"Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.”
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 "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
plural of “boat” — a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
past form of “commence” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading The two boats now commenced their journey.
with ease (“easy” is sometimes used informally for “easily”)
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
undertake a journey or trip
From this reading The two boats now commenced their journey.
someone in charge of other people
From this reading "Should you?" replied the keeper.
a tower with a light that gives warning of shoals to passing ships
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The two boats now commenced their journey.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
with speed
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "Should you?" replied the keeper.
an arrangement of objects or people side by side in a line
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "Should you?" replied the keeper.
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
carry out
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Should you?" replied the keeper.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The two boats now commenced their journey.
in or at that place or location
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
the cardinal number that is the sum of nineteen and one
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
(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 "Well, the sea is smooth, and we can all go easily in two boats.--James, you manage one, and I’ll cap’n the other.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The two boats from the lighthouse were quickly at the bell-buoy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It won’t take more than twenty minutes to row there."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Should you?" replied the keeper.
Chapter 5 of At the Black Rocks by Edward A. (Edward Augustus) Rand holds 455 sentences, grouped into 91 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 5 holds 455 sentences of At the Black Rocks, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of At the Black Rocks by Edward A. (Edward Augustus) Rand exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 455 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 5 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 At the Black Rocks by Edward A. (Edward Augustus) Rand on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3099 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40269 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40269, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 258 minutes of reading across 620 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through At the Black Rocks section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of At the Black Rocks 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 At the Black Rocks, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
