Chapter 22 of Black Oxen is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXII
Chapter 22 of Black Oxen is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York. But not up here. That he would be willing to swear. There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her. She had been youth incarnate.
Chapter 22 of Black Oxen is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
create by hammering
From this reading “There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.”
make concrete and real
From this reading “She had been youth incarnate.”
not subject to the control of the will
From this reading “There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.”
a drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving
From this reading “There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.”
a restraint that confines or restricts freedom (especially something used to tie down or restrain a prisoner)
From this reading “There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.”
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading “There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.”
utter obscenities or profanities
From this reading “That he would be willing to swear.”
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading “That he would be willing to swear.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But not up here.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
create by hammering
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
an established custom
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading But not up here.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
make concrete and real
From this reading She had been youth incarnate.
not subject to the control of the will
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading But not up here.
by chance
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
a drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
a restraint that confines or restricts freedom (especially something used to tie down or restrain a prisoner)
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had been youth incarnate.
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
utter obscenities or profanities
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There had been another revolution, involuntary perhaps, but the stronger for that; and every shackle that memory and habit can forge had dropped from her.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading But not up here.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading That he would be willing to swear.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading Perhaps--as long as they were down there in New York.
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading She had been youth incarnate.
Chapter 22 of Black Oxen by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton holds 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 22 holds 390 sentences of Black Oxen, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 22 of Black Oxen by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 22 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 Black Oxen by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9023 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25542 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25542, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1805 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Black Oxen section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of Black Oxen 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 Black Oxen, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
