Chapter 7 of Footprints is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Footprints is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I July 6, 1900. Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare. I screamed and woke. I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest. I began to cry.
Chapter 7 of Footprints is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading “I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.”
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading “I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.”
the month following June and preceding August
From this reading “I July 6, 1900.”
A terrifying or distressing dream.
From this reading “Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.”
past form of “scream” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “I screamed and woke.”
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading “Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.”
emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
From this reading “I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.”
inflected form of “wake” — be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading “I screamed and woke.”
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 “Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.”
In this reading “Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.”
In this reading “I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I July 6, 1900.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I July 6, 1900.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I screamed and woke.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading I began to cry.
the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading I began to cry.
dearly loved
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
set up or found
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I July 6, 1900.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
the month following June and preceding August
From this reading I July 6, 1900.
immediately past
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
A terrifying or distressing dream.
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
past form of “scream” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading I screamed and woke.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading Dear, dear Sister Judy: Last night I had a terrible nightmare.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I began to cry.
emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
From this reading I found unhappiness sitting like a giant on my chest.
inflected form of “wake” — be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading I screamed and woke.
Chapter 7 of Footprints by Kay Cleaver Strahan holds 100 sentences, grouped into 20 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 7 holds 100 sentences of Footprints, unabridged, divided into 20 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Footprints by Kay Cleaver Strahan exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 100 sentences, grouped into 20 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 20 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 20 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 7 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 Footprints by Kay Cleaver Strahan on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6386 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #75577 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #75577, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 532 minutes of reading across 1278 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Footprints section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Footprints 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 Footprints, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
