Chapter 12 of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ is here in full — 346 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ is here in full — 346 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator. “What force hast thou?” “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries. “Making reliefs of—” “Eighty-four.” “And thy habit?”
Chapter 12 of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ is here in full — 346 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/69 · 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.
a person who is in charge
From this reading “The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.”
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading “The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.”
a powerful effect or influence
From this reading ““What force hast thou?””
an established custom
From this reading ““And thy habit?””
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading ““What force hast thou?””
plural of “relief” — the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced
From this reading ““Making reliefs of—” “Eighty-four.””
having a supporting base
From this reading “The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.”
(ancient Rome) an official elected by the plebeians to protect their interests
From this reading “The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
a person who is in charge
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
being four more than eighty
From this reading “Making reliefs of—” “Eighty-four.”
being two more than fifty
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
a powerful effect or influence
From this reading “What force hast thou?”
an established custom
From this reading “And thy habit?”
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading “What force hast thou?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
ten 10s
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
the act that results in something coming to be
From this reading “Making reliefs of—” “Eighty-four.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
(often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
plural of “relief” — the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced
From this reading “Making reliefs of—” “Eighty-four.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
having a supporting base
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading “What force hast thou?”
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading “And thy habit?”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
(ancient Rome) an official elected by the plebeians to protect their interests
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “Of oarsmen, two hundred and fifty-two; ten supernumeraries.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What force hast thou?”
in the company of; together with
From this reading The tribune, standing upon the helmsman’s deck with the order of the duumvir open in his hand, spoke to the chief of the rowers.[1] [1] Called hortator.
Chapter 12 of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace holds 346 sentences, grouped into 70 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 12 holds 346 sentences of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ, unabridged, divided into 70 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 346 sentences, grouped into 70 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 70 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 70 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 12 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 Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11078 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2145 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2145, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2216 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ 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 Ben-Hur: A tale of the Christ, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
