Chapter 7 of Crossed Trails in Mexico is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Crossed Trails in Mexico is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide. "Smugglers! You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?" "Sh! Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
Chapter 7 of Crossed Trails in Mexico is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
in actual fact
From this reading “You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"”
leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading “You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"”
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading “Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.”
plural of “smuggler” — someone who imports or exports without paying duties
From this reading “"Smugglers!”
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “"WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.”
(of muscles) relieved of stiffness by stretching
From this reading “"WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.”
past form of “warn” — notify of danger, potential harm, or risk
From this reading “Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.”
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading “"WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.”
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.
in actual fact
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
opinion or judgment
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
cut with a saw
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Sh!
plural of “smuggler” — someone who imports or exports without paying duties
From this reading "Smugglers!
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
(of muscles) relieved of stiffness by stretching
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
past form of “warn” — notify of danger, potential harm, or risk
From this reading Not so loud," Jo Ann warned, low-voiced.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading "WE MUST GET AN EARLY START" Peggy stretched her eyes wide.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You actually saw some smugglers in the desert?"
Chapter 7 of Crossed Trails in Mexico by Helen Randolph holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 7 holds 118 sentences of Crossed Trails in Mexico, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Crossed Trails in Mexico by Helen Randolph exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 7 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 Crossed Trails in Mexico by Helen Randolph on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2803 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44061 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44061, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 233 minutes of reading across 561 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Crossed Trails in Mexico section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Crossed Trails in Mexico 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 Crossed Trails in Mexico, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
