Chapter 26 of Flames is here in full — 243 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVI
Chapter 26 of Flames is here in full — 243 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled. "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand. "Doctor." Their hands met and their eyes. And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
Chapter 26 of Flames is here in full — 243 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/48 · 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.
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
intense and profound fear
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
plural of “meet” — a meeting at which a number of athletic contests are held
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading “And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.”
plural of “stranger” — anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
a sweetheart chosen to receive a greeting on Saint Valentine's Day
From this reading “THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.”
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 And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Their hands met and their eyes.
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Their hands met and their eyes.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand.
the act of retaining something
From this reading "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand.
intense and profound fear
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
plural of “meet” — a meeting at which a number of athletic contests are held
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Their hands met and their eyes.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand.
past form of “pause” — interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Valentine," he said, holding out his hand.
perception by means of the eyes
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
plural of “stranger” — anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Their hands met and their eyes.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
a sweetheart chosen to receive a greeting on Saint Valentine's Day
From this reading THE DOCTOR MEETS TWO STRANGERS Upon seeing the doctor, Valentine paused on the threshold of the door, and, as he paused, the doctor's horror fled.
in the company of; together with
From this reading And then Levillier had an instant sensation that he shook hands with a stranger.
Chapter 26 of Flames by Robert Hichens holds 243 sentences, grouped into 49 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 26 holds 243 sentences of Flames, unabridged, divided into 49 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 26 of Flames by Robert Hichens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 243 sentences, grouped into 49 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 49 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 49 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 26 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 Flames by Robert Hichens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 12894 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14253 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14253, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2579 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Flames section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Flames 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 Flames, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
