Chapter 21 of At the Crossroads is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of At the Crossroads is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Mother, I must go!" Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped. "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son. You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?" "No, Mother, it is conscience.
Chapter 21 of At the Crossroads is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/70 · 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.
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading “"No, Mother, it is conscience.”
determined or actuated by emotion rather than reason
From this reading “You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"”
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading “You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"”
(Greek mythology) the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda who was abducted by Paris; the Greek army sailed to Troy to get her back which resulted in the Trojan War
From this reading “Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.”
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading “"You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.”
move or jerk quickly and involuntarily up and down or sideways
From this reading “Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.”
being four more than twenty
From this reading “"You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.”
past form of “weigh” — have a certain weight
From this reading “You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"”
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.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
In this reading “"You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.”
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 to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading "No, Mother, it is conscience.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
determined or actuated by emotion rather than reason
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Mother, I must go!"
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
(Greek mythology) the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda who was abducted by Paris; the Greek army sailed to Troy to get her back which resulted in the Trojan War
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Mother, I must go!"
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading "Mother, I must go!"
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "Mother, I must go!"
not any; not one
From this reading "No, Mother, it is conscience.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
a male human offspring
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
move or jerk quickly and involuntarily up and down or sideways
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
being four more than twenty
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
past form of “weigh” — have a certain weight
From this reading You have weighed the question--it is not emotional excitement?"
a Caucasian
From this reading Helen Northrup did not tremble, but she looked white, thin-lipped.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You have given me the twenty-four hours, son.
Chapter 21 of At the Crossroads by Harriet T. (Harriet Theresa) Comstock holds 353 sentences, grouped into 71 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 21 holds 353 sentences of At the Crossroads, unabridged, divided into 71 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of At the Crossroads by Harriet T. (Harriet Theresa) Comstock exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 353 sentences, grouped into 71 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 71 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 71 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 21 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 Crossroads by Harriet T. (Harriet Theresa) Comstock on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7315 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30095 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30095, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1463 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through At the Crossroads section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of At the Crossroads 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 Crossroads, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
