Chapter 8 of The Adventure of the Empty House is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Adventure of the Empty House is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“What do you make of that, Watson?” Holmes whispered. “It looks like a flight.” “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see. Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
Chapter 8 of The Adventure of the Empty House is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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 formation of aircraft in flight
From this reading ““It looks like a flight.””
a fictitious detective in stories by A. Conan Doyle
From this reading “Holmes whispered.”
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading “Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.””
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading ““It looks like a flight.””
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading ““A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.”
United States telephone engineer who assisted Alexander Graham Bell in his experiments (1854-1934)
From this reading ““What do you make of that, Watson?””
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading “Holmes whispered.”
United States writer and dramatist (1897-1975)
From this reading “Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.””
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 “It looks like a flight.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
a formation of aircraft in flight
From this reading “It looks like a flight.”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
a fictitious detective in stories by A. Conan Doyle
From this reading Holmes whispered.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It looks like a flight.”
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “It looks like a flight.”
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading “It looks like a flight.”
engage in
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “A single man in a dog-cart, so far as I could see.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
in or at that place or location
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
United States telephone engineer who assisted Alexander Graham Bell in his experiments (1854-1934)
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
(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, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading Holmes whispered.
United States writer and dramatist (1897-1975)
From this reading Well, it certainly was not Mr. James Wilder, for there he is at the door.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “What do you make of that, Watson?”
Chapter 8 of The Adventure of the Empty House by Arthur Conan Doyle holds 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 400 sentences of The Adventure of the Empty House, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Adventure of the Empty House by Arthur Conan Doyle exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 The Adventure of the Empty House by Arthur Conan Doyle on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Adventure of the Empty House section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Adventure of the Empty House 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 The Adventure of the Empty House, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
