Chapter 22 of Fire-Tongue is here in full — 81 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXII
Chapter 22 of Fire-Tongue is here in full — 81 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn. Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths. He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably. But now he knew not what to expect. Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
Chapter 22 of Fire-Tongue is here in full — 81 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
in an admirable manner
From this reading “He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.”
past form of “coach” — teach and supervise (someone); act as a trainer or coach (to), as in sports
From this reading “He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.”
plural of “hyacinth” — a red transparent variety of zircon used as a gemstone
From this reading “Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.”
the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form
From this reading “Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.”
with respect to the outside
From this reading “Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.”
forceful prevention; putting down by power or authority
From this reading “Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.”
that is on a string
From this reading “Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.”
pulled or drawn tight
From this reading “Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.”
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 Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
perfect or complete or pure
From this reading Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn.
in an admirable manner
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
past form of “coach” — teach and supervise (someone); act as a trainer or coach (to), as in sports
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
serenely self-possessed and free from agitation especially in times of stress
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn.
act of improving by expanding or enlarging or refining
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
start firing a weapon
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
a form of energy that is transferred by a difference in temperature
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
to a high degree or extent; favorably or with much respect
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
plural of “hyacinth” — a red transparent variety of zircon used as a gemstone
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
with respect to private feelings
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
plural of “muscle” — one of the contractile organs of the body
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
an uneasy psychological state
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
with respect to the outside
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
forceful prevention; putting down by power or authority
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
that is on a string
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
confined on all sides
From this reading Absolute darkness surrounded Nicol Brinn.
pulled or drawn tight
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
for that reason; as a result
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
(used to introduce a logical conclusion) from that fact or reason or as a result
From this reading He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
offensive or disagreeable; causing discomfort or unhappiness
From this reading Darkness, unpleasant heat, and a stifling odour of hyacinths.
past form of “wait” — stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading Therefore inwardly on fire but outwardly composed, muscles taut and nerves strung highly, he waited for the next development.
(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 He had been well coached, and thus far his memory had served him admirably.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading But now he knew not what to expect.
Chapter 22 of Fire-Tongue by Sax Rohmer holds 81 sentences, grouped into 17 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 22 holds 81 sentences of Fire-Tongue, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 22 of Fire-Tongue by Sax Rohmer exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 81 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 22 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 Fire-Tongue by Sax Rohmer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4350 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1159 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1159, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 362 minutes of reading across 870 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fire-Tongue section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of Fire-Tongue 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 Fire-Tongue, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
