Chapter IX of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “Returning the Money,” is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter IX of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “Returning the Money,” is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June. “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect. I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.” “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale. “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
Chapter IX of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “Returning the Money,” is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
inflected form of “chat” — talk socially without exchanging too much information
From this reading “Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.”
a city of southeastern Pennsylvania on the Delaware river (an industrial suburb of Philadelphia)
From this reading “Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.”
an open river valley (in a hilly area)
From this reading ““You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.”
grow worse
From this reading ““Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.”
small air-breathing arthropod
From this reading ““If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.”
full of or characterized by loud and nonmusical sounds
From this reading ““If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.”
provide physical relief, as from pain
From this reading ““If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.”
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading ““If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.”
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 “Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.”
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 I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
inflected form of “chat” — talk socially without exchanging too much information
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
a city of southeastern Pennsylvania on the Delaware river (an industrial suburb of Philadelphia)
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
marked by excessive confidence
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
an open river valley (in a hilly area)
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
grow worse
From this reading “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
plural of “ear” — the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
set up or found
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
small air-breathing arthropod
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
full of or characterized by loud and nonmusical sounds
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
by chance
From this reading “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
provide physical relief, as from pain
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
carry out
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
having edges that are jagged from injury
From this reading “Perhaps I’ll decline to be torn away.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Chester found Sparkfair chatting with June.
(used as an intensifier) extremely well
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “If you don’t mind, sis,” he laughed, “I’ll relieve you of this noisy insect.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You’re wonderfully cocksure about that,” said Dale.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I’ll take him away and give your ears a rest.”
Chapter 9 of Dick Merriwell's Backers by Burt L. Standish holds 105 sentences, grouped into 21 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 9 holds 105 sentences of Dick Merriwell's Backers, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Dick Merriwell's Backers by Burt L. Standish exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 105 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 9 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 Dick Merriwell's Backers by Burt L. Standish on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7051 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #62930 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #62930, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 587 minutes of reading across 1411 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Dick Merriwell's Backers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Dick Merriwell's Backers 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 Dick Merriwell's Backers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
