Chapter 17 of Blackthorn Farm is here in full — 144 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Blackthorn Farm is here in full — 144 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT POST BRIDGE HALL. The warders stared into each other’s faces. "It’s a bad job. You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered. "I aimed at his legs, too.
Chapter 17 of Blackthorn Farm is here in full — 144 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
past form of “aim” — point or cause to go (blows, weapons, or objects such as photographic equipment) towards
From this reading “"I aimed at his legs, too.”
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.
From this reading “AT POST BRIDGE HALL.”
having lost your job
From this reading “You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.”
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading “"It’s a bad job.”
staying power
From this reading “"I aimed at his legs, too.”
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading “AT POST BRIDGE HALL.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “The warders stared into each other’s faces.”
plural of “warder” — a person who works in a prison and is in charge of prisoners
From this reading “The warders stared into each other’s faces.”
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 “"It’s a bad job.”
In this reading “"I aimed at his legs, too.”
In this reading “The warders stared into each other’s faces.”
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’s a bad job.
past form of “aim” — point or cause to go (blows, weapons, or objects such as photographic equipment) towards
From this reading "I aimed at his legs, too.
any thing at all
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT POST BRIDGE HALL.
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading "It’s a bad job.
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.
From this reading AT POST BRIDGE HALL.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
having lost your job
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading AT POST BRIDGE HALL.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "I aimed at his legs, too.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It’s a bad job.
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading "It’s a bad job.
staying power
From this reading "I aimed at his legs, too.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading AT POST BRIDGE HALL.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "I aimed at his legs, too.
plural of “warder” — a person who works in a prison and is in charge of prisoners
From this reading The warders stared into each other’s faces.
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
which person or people
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You’re sure he’s dead——" "I wouldn’t have done it for anything," the man who had fired the shot whispered.
Chapter 17 of Blackthorn Farm by Arthur Applin holds 144 sentences, grouped into 29 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 17 holds 144 sentences of Blackthorn Farm, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Blackthorn Farm by Arthur Applin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 144 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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 17 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 Blackthorn Farm by Arthur Applin on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5795 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #42519 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #42519, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 482 minutes of reading across 1159 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Blackthorn Farm section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Blackthorn Farm 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 Blackthorn Farm, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
