Chapter XII of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “An Evil Band,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter XII of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “An Evil Band,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions. Tommy was both relieved and dismayed. His position was now decidedly awkward and painful. “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought. “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
Chapter XII of Dick Merriwell's Backers, “An Evil Band,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 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.
causing inconvenience
From this reading “His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.”
without question and beyond doubt
From this reading “His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.”
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading “Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.”
possessive form of “hair” — a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
plural of “rat” — any of various long-tailed rodents similar to but larger than a mouse
From this reading “With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.”
-ing form of “scamper” — to move about or proceed hurriedly
From this reading “With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.”
having or making a high-pitched sound such as that made by a mouse or a rusty hinge
From this reading “With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.”
very great or intense
From this reading “With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.”
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.
maintain a required pace or level
In this reading ““If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.”
In this reading “With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.”
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 With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
(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 With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
causing inconvenience
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
maintain with or as if with a bet
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
without question and beyond doubt
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
plural of “direction” — a line leading to a place or point
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.
come or bring to a finish or an end
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
a neutral achromatic color midway between white and black
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
possessive form of “hair” — a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
plural of “keep” — the financial means whereby one lives
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
causing physical or psychological pain
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
the particular portion of space occupied by something
From this reading His position was now decidedly awkward and painful.
plural of “rat” — any of various long-tailed rodents similar to but larger than a mouse
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
(of pain or sorrow) made easier to bear
From this reading Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.
-ing form of “scamper” — to move about or proceed hurriedly
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
having or making a high-pitched sound such as that made by a mouse or a rusty hinge
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
very great or intense
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading “Bet my hair’s begun to turn gray now.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “If this keeps up long, I can see my finish,” he thought.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Tommy was both relieved and dismayed.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With a terrific squeaking and scampering, the rats fled in all directions.
Chapter 12 of Dick Merriwell's Backers by Burt L. Standish holds 107 sentences, grouped into 22 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 12 holds 107 sentences of Dick Merriwell's Backers, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Dick Merriwell's Backers by Burt L. Standish exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 107 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 12 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.
