Chapter 8 of Excuse Me! is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Excuse Me! is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson: "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom." And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained: "Yes, of course. We tried to get it, but it was gone."
Chapter 8 of Excuse Me! is here in full — 177 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.
past form of “blush” — turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
past form of “flinch” — draw back, as with fear or pain
From this reading “And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:”
a New York river; flows southward into New York Bay; explored by Henry Hudson early in the 17th century
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
a commissioned military officer
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
consisting of a haphazard assortment of different kinds
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
vegetables (especially cucumbers) preserved in brine or vinegar
From this reading “A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:”
more desirable than another
From this reading “"I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."”
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 “"I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."”
as might be expected
In this reading “"Yes, of course.”
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 A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
past form of “blush” — turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
a pair who associate with one another
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading "Yes, of course.
past form of “explain” — make plain and comprehensible
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
past form of “flinch” — draw back, as with fear or pain
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
destroyed or killed
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
a New York river; flows southward into New York Bay; explored by Henry Hudson early in the 17th century
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
a commissioned military officer
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
consisting of a haphazard assortment of different kinds
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
a form of address for a man
From this reading And Mr. Hudson had flinched a little as he explained:
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Yes, of course.
vegetables (especially cucumbers) preserved in brine or vinegar
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
more desirable than another
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
a guest cabin
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We tried to get it, but it was gone."
at the time that
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A MIXED PICKLE Mrs. Whitcomb had almost blushed when she had murmured to Lieutenant Hudson:
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, of course.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading "I should think the young couple would have preferred a stateroom."
Chapter 8 of Excuse Me! by Rupert Hughes holds 177 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 8 holds 177 sentences of Excuse Me!, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Excuse Me! by Rupert Hughes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 177 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 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 Excuse Me! by Rupert Hughes on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4574 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40607 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40607, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 381 minutes of reading across 915 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Excuse Me! section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Excuse Me! 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 Excuse Me!, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
