Chapter 12 of Dragon's blood is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Dragon's blood is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel. "Dare say. However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business. On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps." "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
Chapter 12 of Dragon's blood is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
past form of “abstain” — refrain from voting
From this reading “THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.”
plural of “chap” — a boy or man
From this reading “On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."”
past form of “drawl” — lengthen and slow down or draw out
From this reading “THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.”
an unshaved growth of hair on the upper lip
From this reading “"Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.”
reading carefully with intent to remember
From this reading “"Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.”
a message expressing an opinion based on incomplete evidence
From this reading “On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."”
inflected form of “tug” — pull hard
From this reading “"Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.”
compelling immediate action
From this reading “On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."”
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.
past form of “abstain” — refrain from voting
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
a committee having supervisory powers
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
plural of “chap” — a boy or man
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
From this reading "Dare say.
past form of “drawl” — lengthen and slow down or draw out
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
-ing form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
a neutral achromatic color midway between white and black
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
an unshaved growth of hair on the upper lip
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
plural of “note” — a brief written record
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
precisely, exactly
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
a set of confused and meaningless statements
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
express in words
From this reading "Dare say.
reading carefully with intent to remember
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
a message expressing an opinion based on incomplete evidence
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading However, Gilly, their rigmarole _may_ mean business.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
inflected form of “tug” — pull hard
From this reading "Quite right," said Mr. Forrester, tugging his gray moustache, and studying the floor.
compelling immediate action
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
From this reading THE WAR BOARD "Rigmarole?" drawled Heywood, and abstained from glancing at Chantel.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading On that supposition, I made my notes urgent to you chaps."
Chapter 12 of Dragon's blood by Henry Milner Rideout holds 187 sentences, grouped into 38 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 187 sentences of Dragon's blood, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Dragon's blood by Henry Milner Rideout exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 187 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 Dragon's blood by Henry Milner Rideout on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4088 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10321 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10321, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 340 minutes of reading across 818 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Dragon's blood section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Dragon's blood 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 Dragon's blood, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
