Chapter 14 of Captured by the Arabs is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of Captured by the Arabs is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself. There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to. His mind was in a whirl. Where would he land? How far had he yet to go?
Chapter 14 of Captured by the Arabs is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation
From this reading “There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.”
the act of grasping
From this reading “There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.”
in a helpless manner
From this reading “Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.”
lacking power
From this reading “Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.”
plural of “shrub” — a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
From this reading “There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.”
an elevated geological formation
From this reading “Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.”
plural of “stalk” — material consisting of seed coverings and small pieces of stem or leaves that have been separated from the seeds
From this reading “There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.”
turn in a twisting or spinning motion
From this reading “His mind was in a whirl.”
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 “Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.”
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 His mind was in a whirl.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
decreasing in amount or degree
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading How far had he yet to go?
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading How far had he yet to go?
the act of grasping
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading How far had he yet to go?
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Where would he land?
in a helpless manner
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His mind was in a whirl.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How far had he yet to go?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading His mind was in a whirl.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading Where would he land?
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading His mind was in a whirl.
not any; not one
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
lacking power
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
plural of “shrub” — a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
an elevated geological formation
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
the state of being covered with unclean things
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
plural of “stalk” — material consisting of seed coverings and small pieces of stem or leaves that have been separated from the seeds
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
having a sharp inclination
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His mind was in a whirl.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Falling Helplessly Down the steep slope Joe went, powerless to catch himself.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There were no shrubs or stalks to grip, no hard soil to cling to.
in or at the place that
From this reading Where would he land?
turn in a twisting or spinning motion
From this reading His mind was in a whirl.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Where would he land?
but in spite of that
From this reading How far had he yet to go?
Chapter 14 of Captured by the Arabs by James H. Foster holds 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 14 holds 160 sentences of Captured by the Arabs, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of Captured by the Arabs by James H. Foster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 14 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 Captured by the Arabs by James H. Foster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3660 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43267 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43267, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 305 minutes of reading across 732 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Captured by the Arabs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Captured by the Arabs 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 Captured by the Arabs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
