Chapter 20 of Checkmate is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Checkmate is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A LETTER AND A SUMMONS. Paris? Yes, he knew the hand well. His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety. This he will read first.
Chapter 20 of Checkmate is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
(psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic
From this reading “His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.”
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading “His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.”
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading “A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.”
the capital and largest city of France; and international center of culture and commerce
From this reading “Paris?”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.”
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading “This he will read first.”
a request to be present
From this reading “A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.”
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes, he knew the hand well.”
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.
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 A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.
(psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading This he will read first.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Yes, he knew the hand well.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Yes, he knew the hand well.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
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 Yes, he knew the hand well.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
the capital and largest city of France; and international center of culture and commerce
From this reading Paris?
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading This he will read first.
a request to be present
From this reading A LETTER AND A SUMMONS.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Yes, he knew the hand well.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This he will read first.
(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 Yes, he knew the hand well.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading This he will read first.
in the company of; together with
From this reading His face darkened a little with a peculiar anxiety.
an affirmative
From this reading Yes, he knew the hand well.
Chapter 20 of Checkmate by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu holds 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 20 holds 199 sentences of Checkmate, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Checkmate by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 20 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 Checkmate by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9388 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38460 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38460, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1878 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Checkmate section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Checkmate 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 Checkmate, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
