Chapter 1 of Dearest Enemy is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Dearest Enemy is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on. But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound. It kept repeating. The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain. Buzzzz.
Chapter 1 of Dearest Enemy is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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 “actor” — a theatrical performer
From this reading “_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.”
noisy like the sound of a bee
From this reading “But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.”
plural of “edge” — the boundary of a surface
From this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
(of animals) officially recorded with or certified by a recognized breed association; especially in a stud book
From this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
the act of doing or performing again
From this reading “It kept repeating.”
pulsate or pound with abnormal force
From this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
an inherited pattern of thought or action
From this reading “_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.”
plural of “vibration” — the act of vibrating
From this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
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 “It kept repeating.”
In this reading “But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.”
In this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
In this reading “_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.”
In this reading “_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.”
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading “_Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.”
In this reading “The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.”
In this reading “But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.”
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 But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
plural of “actor” — a theatrical performer
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
the lower side of anything
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
that part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher nervous centers; enclosed within the skull; continuous with the spinal cord
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
noisy like the sound of a bee
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Buzzzz.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
plural of “edge” — the boundary of a surface
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading It kept repeating.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
(of animals) officially recorded with or certified by a recognized breed association; especially in a stud book
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
the act of doing or performing again
From this reading It kept repeating.
give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
in or at or to some place
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
inflected form of “teach” — impart skills or knowledge to
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
in or at that place or location
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
pulsate or pound with abnormal force
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
an inherited pattern of thought or action
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
shaped or conditioned or disciplined by training; often used as a combining form
From this reading _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
precisely as stated
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
plural of “vibration” — the act of vibrating
From this reading The gentle throb of it vibrated his eardrums; the vibrations registered somewhere at the bottom edges of his brain.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
(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 _Well trained actors are taught the old tradition that the show must go on.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
at the time that
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading But what's the point of it all when your audience is very, very dead?_ From somewhere there was a buzzing sound.
Chapter 1 of Dearest Enemy by Fox B. Holden holds 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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 1 holds 430 sentences of Dearest Enemy, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Dearest Enemy by Fox B. Holden exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 1 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.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Dearest Enemy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
