Chapter 23 of Citizen Bird is here in full — 67 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of Citizen Bird is here in full — 67 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk! Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge. "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank. "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering." "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
Chapter 23 of Citizen Bird is here in full — 67 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/13 · 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.
plural of “fellow” — a boy or man
From this reading “TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!”
the act of pounding (delivering repeated heavy blows)
From this reading “"Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."”
unpleasantly stern
From this reading “Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.”
plural of “noise” — sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading “"Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."”
not divisible by two
From this reading “TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!”
make short successive sounds
From this reading “"Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.”
thrown into a state of agitated confusion; (“rattled” is an informal term)
From this reading “"Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.”
plural of “woodpecker” — bird with strong claws and a stiff tail adapted for climbing and a hard chisel-like bill for boring into wood for insects
From this reading “"Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."”
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 Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
the two together, not just one
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
without stop or interruption
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
the boundary of a surface
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
plural of “fellow” — a boy or man
From this reading TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
the act of pounding (delivering repeated heavy blows)
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
unpleasantly stern
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
plural of “noise” — sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
not divisible by two
From this reading TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
above and across; more than
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
make short successive sounds
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
thrown into a state of agitated confusion; (“rattled” is an informal term)
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Tr-r-r-at-tat-tat!" rattled another bird from over the river bank.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading TWO ODD FELLOWS "KUK--kuk--kuk!
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
which person or people
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
From this reading Crcok--c-r-o-c-k--c-r-o-c-k!" cried a harsh voice from the wood edge.
plural of “woodpecker” — bird with strong claws and a stiff tail adapted for climbing and a hard chisel-like bill for boring into wood for insects
From this reading "Those must both be Woodpeckers," said the children; "for both noises are like hammering."
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes," continued Nat, "and I see the one who made the rattle.
Chapter 23 of Citizen Bird by Mabel Osgood Wright holds 67 sentences, grouped into 14 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 23 holds 67 sentences of Citizen Bird, unabridged, divided into 14 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of Citizen Bird by Mabel Osgood Wright exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 67 sentences, grouped into 14 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 14 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 14 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 23 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 Citizen Bird by Mabel Osgood Wright on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4744 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #11896 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #11896, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 395 minutes of reading across 949 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Citizen Bird section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of Citizen Bird 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 Citizen Bird, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
