Chapter XX of Babes in the Bush, “An Unexpected Development,” is here in full — 321 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter XX of Babes in the Bush, “An Unexpected Development,” is here in full — 321 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where. It would be the only chance for their lives. As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them. Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared. The nights commenced to lengthen.
Chapter XX of Babes in the Bush, “An Unexpected Development,” is here in full — 321 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/64 · 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.
especially a leaf of grass or the broad portion of a leaf as distinct from the petiole
From this reading “Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.”
past form of “commence” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “The nights commenced to lengthen.”
a military campaign designed to achieve a specific objective in a foreign country
From this reading “An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.”
make longer
From this reading “The nights commenced to lengthen.”
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading “The nights commenced to lengthen.”
a judge of a probate court
From this reading “Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.”
separated in relationship by a given degree of descent
From this reading “An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.”
the capital raised by a corporation through the issue of shares entitling holders to an ownership interest
From this reading “An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.”
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.
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
especially a leaf of grass or the broad portion of a leaf as distinct from the petiole
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
past form of “commence” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading The nights commenced to lengthen.
past form of “disappear” — get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
a military campaign designed to achieve a specific objective in a foreign country
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
succulent herbaceous vegetation of pasture land
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
make longer
From this reading The nights commenced to lengthen.
plural of “life” — a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading The nights commenced to lengthen.
not any; not one
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
and nothing more
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
a judge of a probate court
From this reading Every blade of the ordinary herbage had disappeared.
being a member of or formed into a labor union
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
separated in relationship by a given degree of descent
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
the season of growth
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
the capital raised by a corporation through the issue of shares entitling holders to an ownership interest
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
in or at the place that
From this reading An expedition was to be organised in spring, and the stock removed, no matter where.
the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox
From this reading As it was, the winter was fast coming upon them.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading It would be the only chance for their lives.
Chapter 20 of Babes in the Bush by Rolf Boldrewood holds 321 sentences, grouped into 65 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 20 holds 321 sentences of Babes in the Bush, unabridged, divided into 65 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Babes in the Bush by Rolf Boldrewood exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 321 sentences, grouped into 65 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 65 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 65 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 20 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 Babes in the Bush by Rolf Boldrewood on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8543 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51209 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51209, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1709 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Babes in the Bush section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Babes in the Bush 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 Babes in the Bush, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
