Chapter 1 of Back to Billabong is here in full — 345 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Back to Billabong is here in full — 345 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“It--it doesn't look like anything earthly. You must do it again, Wilfred.” “Don't you, Wilf.” Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs. “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
Chapter 1 of Back to Billabong is here in full — 345 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 3/69 · 5 reading units · Lines 11–15
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.
any thing at all
From this reading ““It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.”
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
of or belonging to or characteristic of this earth as distinguished from heaven
From this reading ““It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.”
any of several mostly spotted fishes that resemble groupers
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
staying power
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
-ing form of “tilt” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.”
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.
anew
From this reading You must do it again, Wilfred.”
any thing at all
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading You must do it again, Wilfred.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don't you, Wilf.”
of or belonging to or characteristic of this earth as distinguished from heaven
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
any of several mostly spotted fishes that resemble groupers
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
staying power
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “It--it doesn't look like anything earthly.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading You must do it again, Wilfred.”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
-ing form of “tilt” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don't you, Wilf.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You must do it again, Wilfred.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Wilfred's sister leaned back in her chair, tilting it on its hind legs.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading “You have nothing to do with Wilfred's work, Avice.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You must do it again, Wilfred.”
Chapter 1 of Back to Billabong by Mary Grant Bruce holds 345 sentences, grouped into 69 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 1 holds 345 sentences of Back to Billabong, unabridged, divided into 69 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Back to Billabong by Mary Grant Bruce exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 345 sentences, grouped into 69 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 69 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 69 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 1 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 Back to Billabong by Mary Grant Bruce on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Back to Billabong section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Back to Billabong 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 Back to Billabong, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
