Chapter 8 of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
WORDS THAT STARTLE. It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity. Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however. Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord. Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
Chapter 8 of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.”
an old word for “before”
From this reading “Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.”
time without end
From this reading “It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.”
past form of “grasp” — hold firmly
From this reading “Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.”
thrust or throw into
From this reading “It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.”
plural of “second” — 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading “Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.”
to stimulate to action
From this reading “WORDS THAT STARTLE.”
-ing form of “straighten” — straighten up or out; make straight
From this reading “Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.”
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 It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
an old word for “before”
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
time without end
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
past form of “grasp” — hold firmly
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
fail to keep or to maintain; cease to have, either physically or in an abstract sense
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
a particular point in time
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
thrust or throw into
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
the state of being present; current existence
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
plural of “second” — 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
to stimulate to action
From this reading WORDS THAT STARTLE.
come to a halt, stop moving
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
-ing form of “straighten” — straighten up or out; make straight
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading It seemed a terrible plunge into eternity.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading WORDS THAT STARTLE.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Not for one moment did the detective lose his presence of mind, however.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
create by training and teaching
From this reading Ere many seconds the train came to a stop.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Straightening, he reached up and grasped the bell-cord.
the words that are spoken
From this reading WORDS THAT STARTLE.
Chapter 8 of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective by A. Frank Pinkerton holds 135 sentences, grouped into 27 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 8 holds 135 sentences of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective by A. Frank Pinkerton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 135 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 8 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 Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective by A. Frank Pinkerton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4163 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5901 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5901, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 346 minutes of reading across 833 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective 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 Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
