Chapter 1 of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE. CHAPTER ONE. HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN. THE FALSE STEP. There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
Chapter 1 of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading “CHAPTER ONE.”
the length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle and connecting two points on the circumference
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
-ing form of “divide” — separate into parts or portions
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
plural of “light” — (physics) electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensation
From this reading “BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.”
in or characteristic of a region of the United States north of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
a long narrow natural elevation or striation
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
(politics) a state of disfavor
From this reading “There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.”
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 There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading CHAPTER ONE.
the length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle and connecting two points on the circumference
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
-ing form of “divide” — separate into parts or portions
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
not in accordance with the fact or reality or actuality
From this reading THE FALSE STEP.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
plural of “light” — (physics) electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensation
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
in or characteristic of a region of the United States north of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading CHAPTER ONE.
a unit of radiation exposure; the dose of ionizing radiation that will produce 1 electrostatic unit of electricity in 1 cc of dry air
From this reading BLUE LIGHTS, BY R.M. BALLANTYNE.
a long narrow natural elevation or striation
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
a republic in northeastern Africa on the Red Sea; achieved independence from Egypt and the United Kingdom in 1956
From this reading HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN.
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading THE FALSE STEP.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nineteen and one
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
(politics) a state of disfavor
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN.
plural of “yard” — a unit of length equal to 3 feet; defined as 91.44 centimeters; originally taken to be the average length of a stride
From this reading There is a dividing ridge in the great northern wilderness of America, whereon lies a lakelet of not more than twenty yards in diameter.
Chapter 1 of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne holds 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 395 sentences of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4396 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21719 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21719, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 366 minutes of reading across 880 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan 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 Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
