Chapter 6 of Beginners Luck is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of Beginners Luck is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark. It was very late. She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief. She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar. “What’s the matter?” said Flo.
Chapter 6 of Beginners Luck is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
not in a state of sleep; completely conscious
From this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
inflected form of “blow” — exhale hard
From this reading “She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.”
the operator of a motor vehicle
From this reading “A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.”
scraped or touched lightly in passing
From this reading “A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.”
a square piece of cloth used for wiping the eyes or nose or as a costume accessory
From this reading “She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.”
United States confectioner and philanthropist who created the model industrial town of Hershey, Pennsylvania; founded an industrial school for orphan boys (1857-1945)
From this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
inflected form of “prop” — support by placing against something solid or rigid
From this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
past form of “tiptoe” — walk on one's toes
From this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
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 car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.”
come together
In this reading “A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.”
In this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
In this reading “She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.”
In this reading “A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.”
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 before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
(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 She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
not in a state of sleep; completely conscious
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
inflected form of “blow” — exhale hard
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
the operator of a motor vehicle
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
scraped or touched lightly in passing
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
a square piece of cloth used for wiping the eyes or nose or as a costume accessory
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
United States confectioner and philanthropist who created the model industrial town of Hershey, Pennsylvania; founded an industrial school for orphan boys (1857-1945)
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was very late.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
immediately past
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading It was very late.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading “What’s the matter?” said Flo.
the organ of smell and entrance to the respiratory tract; the prominent part of the face of man or other mammals
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
inflected form of “prop” — support by placing against something solid or rigid
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “What’s the matter?” said Flo.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A car ran across the bridge and almost grazed her; its driver did not see her in the dark.
plural of “thought” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
past form of “tiptoe” — walk on one's toes
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading She blew her nose at last and it was as if she blew all her thoughts, too, into the handkerchief.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
precisely as stated
From this reading It was very late.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was very late.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What’s the matter?” said Flo.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She tiptoed into the house, but Flo was awake, propped up in her bed, with a book and a Hershey bar.
Chapter 6 of Beginners Luck by Emily Hahn holds 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 6 holds 384 sentences of Beginners Luck, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of Beginners Luck by Emily Hahn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 6 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 Beginners Luck by Emily Hahn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4484 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43542 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43542, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 373 minutes of reading across 897 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Beginners Luck section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Beginners Luck 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 Beginners Luck, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
