Chapter 3 of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays is here in full — 972 sentences across 195 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays is here in full — 972 sentences across 195 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE GRANDFATHER. He will make a noise in the house. THE DAUGHTER. I will tell him to work quietly. [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
Chapter 3 of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays is here in full — 972 sentences across 195 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/194 · 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 female human offspring
From this reading “THE DAUGHTER.”
the father of your father or mother
From this reading “THE GRANDFATHER.”
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading “He will make a noise in the house.”
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading “[_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].”
with low volume
From this reading “I will tell him to work quietly.”
an edge tool for cutting grass; has a long handle that must be held with both hands and a curved blade that moves parallel to the ground
From this reading “[_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].”
having the point made sharp
From this reading “[_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].”
shake, as from cold
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 “He will make a noise in the house.”
In this reading “He will make a noise in the house.”
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 He will make a noise in the house.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
a female human offspring
From this reading THE DAUGHTER.
the father of your father or mother
From this reading THE GRANDFATHER.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
engage in
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
with low volume
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
an edge tool for cutting grass; has a long handle that must be held with both hands and a curved blade that moves parallel to the ground
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
having the point made sharp
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
shake, as from cold
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
happening unexpectedly
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
express in words
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE GRANDFATHER.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading He will make a noise in the house.
in the company of; together with
From this reading [_Suddenly the sound of a scythe being sharpened is heard outside._] THE GRANDFATHER [_with a shudder_].
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading I will tell him to work quietly.
Chapter 3 of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays by Frank [Editor] Shay holds 972 sentences, grouped into 195 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 972 sentences of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays, unabridged, divided into 195 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays by Frank [Editor] Shay exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 972 sentences, grouped into 195 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 195 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 195 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 Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays by Frank [Editor] Shay on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 35466 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36984 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36984, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 7094 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 37 chapters of Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays 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 Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
