Chapter 4 of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise is here in full — 72 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise is here in full — 72 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PLOTTING WITH A FOE. The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him: “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.” “I am ready.” “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
Chapter 4 of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise is here in full — 72 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/14 · 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 “ally” — a friendly nation
an armed adversary (especially a member of an opposing military force)
From this reading “PLOTTING WITH A FOE.”
the emotion of intense dislike; a feeling of dislike so strong that it demands action
From this reading “The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:”
a person who rules or guides or inspires others
From this reading “The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:”
someone who has committed a crime or has been legally convicted of a crime
From this reading “The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:”
inflected form of “plot” — plan secretly, usually something illegal
From this reading “PLOTTING WITH A FOE.”
any of several noncommissioned officer ranks in the Army or Air Force or Marines ranking above a corporal
From this reading “The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:”
serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading “The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:”
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.
keep in mind for attention or consideration
In this reading ““I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.””
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 PLOTTING WITH A FOE.
possessive form of “ally” — a friendly nation
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “I am ready.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
an armed adversary (especially a member of an opposing military force)
From this reading PLOTTING WITH A FOE.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
the emotion of intense dislike; a feeling of dislike so strong that it demands action
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I am ready.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
and nothing more
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
a person who rules or guides or inspires others
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
to a great degree or extent
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
someone who has committed a crime or has been legally convicted of a crime
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
experiencing or manifesting pleasure
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
inflected form of “plot” — plan secretly, usually something illegal
From this reading PLOTTING WITH A FOE.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading “I am ready.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
any of several noncommissioned officer ranks in the Army or Air Force or Marines ranking above a corporal
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
express in words
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
in or at that place or location
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “I’ll tell you just what my plan is, and see what you think of it.”
at the time that
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading PLOTTING WITH A FOE.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading The outlaw leader seemed pleased with the idea of his ally’s hatred for Sergeant Fallon, and said, when he was told that he would serve him:
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Well, you will have to go slow, and there is much to be done.”
Chapter 4 of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise by Prentiss Ingraham holds 72 sentences, grouped into 15 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 4 holds 72 sentences of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise, unabridged, divided into 15 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise by Prentiss Ingraham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 72 sentences, grouped into 15 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 15 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 15 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 4 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 Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise by Prentiss Ingraham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3467 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64262 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64262, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 288 minutes of reading across 694 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise 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 Buffalo Bill's Big Surprise, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
