Chapter 5 of Down the Snow Stairs is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Down the Snow Stairs is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.” “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice. Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground. “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly. “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
Chapter 5 of Down the Snow Stairs is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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 a blunt direct manner
From this reading ““I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.”
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading ““I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.”
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading ““TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.””
be the source of pain
From this reading ““No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.”
the combined stakes of the betters
From this reading “Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.”
with modesty; in a modest manner
From this reading “Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.”
a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
From this reading ““I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.”
take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading ““I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.”
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 “Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.”
a youthful female person
In this reading “Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.”
In this reading “Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.”
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 SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
any thing at all
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
in a blunt direct manner
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
put or send forth
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.”
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.”
opinion or judgment
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
a young female
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
the act of departing
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading “TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.”
be the source of pain
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
the combined stakes of the betters
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
with modesty; in a modest manner
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, indeed, I never hurt anything,” answered the girl.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
cut with a saw
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
having a supporting base
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
carry out
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
in or at that place or location
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “TO DADDY COAX’S HOUSE.”
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
which person or people
From this reading “I think I saw you with the cruel children who were going to rob the nest,” she said bluntly.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Kitty turned round and saw a little girl standing with her eyes modestly cast on the ground.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “I SHALL take you there,” said a voice.
Chapter 5 of Down the Snow Stairs by Alice Corkran holds 178 sentences, grouped into 36 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 5 holds 178 sentences of Down the Snow Stairs, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Down the Snow Stairs by Alice Corkran exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 178 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 5 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 Down the Snow Stairs by Alice Corkran on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2639 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #57413 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #57413, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 219 minutes of reading across 528 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Down the Snow Stairs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of Down the Snow Stairs 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 Down the Snow Stairs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
