Chapter 20 of Clayhanger is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Clayhanger is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him. "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?" It was astounding how news flew in the town! "He's not very well. Doctor's ordered him a rest."
Chapter 20 of Clayhanger is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
not functioning properly
From this reading “"What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"”
the event of one object coming closer to another
From this reading “Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.”
bewildering or striking dumb with wonder
From this reading “It was astounding how news flew in the town!”
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading “Doctor's ordered him a rest."”
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading “It was astounding how news flew in the town!”
a trodden path
From this reading “Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.”
past form of “swerve” — turn sharply; change direction abruptly
From this reading “Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.”
in a vague way
From this reading “Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.”
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 Doctor's ordered him a rest."
personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
not functioning properly
From this reading "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
the event of one object coming closer to another
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
bewildering or striking dumb with wonder
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading Doctor's ordered him a rest."
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
well known or easily recognized
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
a trodden path
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
a man of refinement
From this reading "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He's not very well.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
information about recent and important events
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
not any; not one
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "He's not very well.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"
having a systematic arrangement; especially having elements succeeding in order according to rule
From this reading Doctor's ordered him a rest."
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Doctor's ordered him a rest."
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
past form of “swerve” — turn sharply; change direction abruptly
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
the fifth day of the week; the fourth working day
From this reading "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading It was astounding how news flew in the town!
in a vague way
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
precisely as stated
From this reading "He's not very well.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped 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 "He's not very well.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What's amiss with th' old gentleman?"
any or all of a kind, it does not matter which
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
belonging to which person
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Suddenly an approaching man whose face was vaguely familiar but with whom he had no acquaintance whatever, swerved across the footpath and stopped him.
Chapter 20 of Clayhanger by Arnold Bennett holds 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 417 sentences of Clayhanger, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Clayhanger by Arnold Bennett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Clayhanger by Arnold Bennett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13540 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21249 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21249, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2708 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Clayhanger section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of Clayhanger 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 Clayhanger, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
