Chapter 3 of Drake is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Drake is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HAWKINS (_laughing_). Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you? They must be off. If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave. They dare not enter into conditions.
Chapter 3 of Drake is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
with boldness, in a bold manner
From this reading “If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.”
plural of “comrade” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading “Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?”
the prevailing context that influences the performance or the outcome of a process
From this reading “They dare not enter into conditions.”
plural of “excellency” — a title used to address dignitaries (such as ambassadors or governors); usually preceded by “Your” or “His” or “Her”
From this reading “Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?”
the act of fighting; any contest or struggle
From this reading “If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.”
English privateer involved in the slave trade; later helped build the fleet that in 1588 defeated the Spanish Armada (1532-1595)
From this reading “HAWKINS (_laughing_).”
showing or feeling mirth or pleasure or happiness
established or decided beyond dispute or doubt
From this reading “Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?”
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 “They dare not enter into conditions.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading They must be off.
with boldness, in a bold manner
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
plural of “comrade” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
the prevailing context that influences the performance or the outcome of a process
From this reading They dare not enter into conditions.
take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
From this reading They dare not enter into conditions.
to come or go into
From this reading They dare not enter into conditions.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
plural of “excellency” — a title used to address dignitaries (such as ambassadors or governors); usually preceded by “Your” or “His” or “Her”
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
the act of fighting; any contest or struggle
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
English privateer involved in the slave trade; later helped build the fleet that in 1588 defeated the Spanish Armada (1532-1595)
From this reading HAWKINS (_laughing_).
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading They dare not enter into conditions.
showing or feeling mirth or pleasure or happiness
From this reading HAWKINS (_laughing_).
go away from a place
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
the force of workers available
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading They must be off.
not any; not one
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading They dare not enter into conditions.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading They must be off.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
established or decided beyond dispute or doubt
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They must be off.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
(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, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading If they meant fighting, they would have boldly entered like men, and asked no one’s leave.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Well, Comrades, I think I have settled their Excellencies; what think you?
Chapter 3 of Drake by William MacOubrey holds 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 3 holds 444 sentences of Drake, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Drake by William MacOubrey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 3 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 Drake by William MacOubrey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3553 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52582 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52582, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 296 minutes of reading across 711 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Drake section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Drake 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 Drake, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
