Chapter 4 of Crooked Trails and Straight is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Crooked Trails and Straight is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle. Buck was standing beside the bed. "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin. "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau. So he was, comparatively speaking.
Chapter 4 of Crooked Trails and Straight is here in full — 211 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.
aroused or activated
From this reading “THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.”
to strive with determination
From this reading “Buck was standing beside the bed.”
in a relative manner; by comparison to something else
From this reading “So he was, comparatively speaking.”
(of hair) having curls or waves
From this reading “THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.”
a man who is much concerned with his dress and appearance
From this reading “"Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.”
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading “"How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.”
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading “"Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.”
a three-sided polygon
From this reading “THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.”
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 “Buck was standing beside the bed.”
In this reading “"How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.”
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 THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
aroused or activated
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Buck was standing beside the bed.
next to; at the side of
From this reading Buck was standing beside the bed.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
to strive with determination
From this reading Buck was standing beside the bed.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
in a relative manner; by comparison to something else
From this reading So he was, comparatively speaking.
prepare a hot meal
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
(of hair) having curls or waves
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
a man who is much concerned with his dress and appearance
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
being satisfactory or in satisfactory condition
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading "Fine and dandy," grinned back Flandrau.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So he was, comparatively speaking.
a male human offspring
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading So he was, comparatively speaking.
having a supporting base
From this reading Buck was standing beside the bed.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
a three-sided polygon
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE CULLISONS Curly was awakened by the sound of the cook beating the call to breakfast on a triangle.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "How're they coming this glad mo'ning, son?" he inquired with a grin.
Chapter 4 of Crooked Trails and Straight by William MacLeod Raine holds 211 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 4 holds 211 sentences of Crooked Trails and Straight, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Crooked Trails and Straight by William MacLeod Raine exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 211 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 4 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 Crooked Trails and Straight by William MacLeod Raine on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6287 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26911 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26911, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 523 minutes of reading across 1258 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Crooked Trails and Straight section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of Crooked Trails and Straight 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 Crooked Trails and Straight, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
