Chapter 1 of Birthday Present is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Birthday Present is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane. It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last! "It's tonight or never," Diane said. "Yes," I said. I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
Chapter 1 of Birthday Present is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
the thing arranged or agreed to
From this reading “It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!”
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading “I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.”
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading “I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.”
a small reddish planet that is the 4th from the sun and is periodically visible to the naked eye; minerals rich in iron cover its surface and are responsible for its characteristic color
From this reading “Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.”
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading “It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!”
depleted of energy, force, or strength
From this reading “Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.”
On the present night.
From this reading “"It's tonight or never," Diane said.”
past form of “watch” — look attentively
From this reading “I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.”
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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
from one side of something to the other
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
the thing arranged or agreed to
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It's tonight or never," Diane said.
immediately past
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
a small reddish planet that is the 4th from the sun and is periodically visible to the naked eye; minerals rich in iron cover its surface and are responsible for its characteristic color
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
used to form the superlative
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading "It's tonight or never," Diane said.
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading "It's tonight or never," Diane said.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "It's tonight or never," Diane said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
depleted of energy, force, or strength
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
On the present night.
From this reading "It's tonight or never," Diane said.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a nice arrangement--much too nice to last!
past form of “watch” — look attentively
From this reading I watched her as she walked back and forth across my bedroom floor.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Diane's husband spent most of his time on Mars, and I spent most of mine with Diane.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes," I said.
Chapter 1 of Birthday Present by Arnold Marmor holds 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 168 sentences of Birthday Present, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Birthday Present by Arnold Marmor exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 Birthday Present by Arnold Marmor 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 Birthday Present section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Birthday Present 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 Birthday Present, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
