Chapter 8 of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness. Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression. "Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben. Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark. "We might have expected something like this," he said.
Chapter 8 of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading “THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.”
come or bring to a finish or an end
From this reading “THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.”
secretly shelter (as of fugitives or criminals)
From this reading “THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.”
putting someone in prison or in jail as lawful punishment
From this reading “Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.”
a state of confusion and disorderliness
From this reading “"Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben.”
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading “Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.”
inflected form of “rob” — take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading “Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.”
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
From this reading “Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.”
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 “THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.”
temporarily
In this reading “Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.”
In this reading “Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.”
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 "Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
come or bring to a finish or an end
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
set up or found
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
secretly shelter (as of fugitives or criminals)
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
putting someone in prison or in jail as lawful punishment
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
a state of confusion and disorderliness
From this reading "Here's a mess!" exclaimed Ben.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
a particular point in time
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
past form of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
inflected form of “rob” — take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
happening without warning or in a short space of time
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Dare nodded, then remembered that Ben could not see him in the dark.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
used when the people doing the action are also its object
From this reading THE SECRET HARBOUR Ben and Dare found themselves in complete darkness.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Their surprise at their sudden imprisonment robbed them of speech for the moment, then found expression.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We might have expected something like this," he said.
Chapter 8 of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers by Erle Spencer holds 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 8 holds 212 sentences of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers by Erle Spencer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 8 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 Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers by Erle Spencer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2571 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #67826 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #67826, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 214 minutes of reading across 515 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers 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 Contraband: A Tale of Modern Smugglers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
