Chapter 11 of Brother Billy is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of Brother Billy is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy. One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day. Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think. Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world. "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
Chapter 11 of Brother Billy is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
possessive form of “billy” — a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading “Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.”
(Old Testament) Adam's wife in Judeo-Christian mythology: the first woman and mother of the human race; God created Eve from Adam's rib and placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden
From this reading “CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.”
a city in central Italy on the Arno; provincial capital of Tuscany; center of the Italian Renaissance from 14th to 16th centuries
From this reading “One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.”
past form of “hint” — drop a hint; intimate by a hint
From this reading “One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.”
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading “"It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.”
a future prospect or potential
From this reading “One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.”
the legendary patron saint of children; an imaginary being who is thought to bring presents to children at Christmas
From this reading “One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.”
the activity of making visits
From this reading “One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.”
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 “CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.”
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 some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
possessive form of “billy” — a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
period extending from Dec. 24 to Jan. 6
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
an institution created to conduct business
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
(Old Testament) Adam's wife in Judeo-Christian mythology: the first woman and mother of the human race; God created Eve from Adam's rib and placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
a city in central Italy on the Arno; provincial capital of Tuscany; center of the Italian Renaissance from 14th to 16th centuries
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
past form of “hint” — drop a hint; intimate by a hint
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
not one and not the other of two
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
a future prospect or potential
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
filled with bewilderment
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
the legendary patron saint of children; an imaginary being who is thought to bring presents to children at Christmas
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
an idea that is suggested
From this reading "It's some kind of a joke, I guess," was Billy's suggestion.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading CHRISTMAS EVE Two things puzzled Billy.
the activity of making visits
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Neither Billy's father nor Billy's mother knew what to think.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading One was the letter from Aunt Florence, in which she hinted at the possibility of visiting Santa Claus on Christmas Day.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Mid-winter was not the time to expect company in their part of the world.
Chapter 11 of Brother Billy by Frances Margaret Fox holds 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 11 holds 130 sentences of Brother Billy, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of Brother Billy by Frances Margaret Fox exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 11 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 Brother Billy by Frances Margaret Fox on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1547 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44637 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44637, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 128 minutes of reading across 310 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Brother Billy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Brother Billy 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 Brother Billy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
