Chapter XVI of For the Defence, “The Evidence of Jaggard,” is here in full — 164 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XVI
Chapter XVI of For the Defence, “The Evidence of Jaggard,” is here in full — 164 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully. "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?" "Yes. I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps. "But I shall be even with him.
Chapter XVI of For the Defence, “The Evidence of Jaggard,” is here in full — 164 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
at or to or toward the back or rear
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
the chest considered as the place where secret thoughts are kept
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
excessively quick
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
the number that is represented as a one followed by 6 zeros
From this reading “"Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.”
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading “"Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.”
venomous Old World snakes characterized by hollow venom-conducting fangs in the upper jaw
From this reading “I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
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 took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.”
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 "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
at or to or toward the back or rear
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "But I shall be even with him.
the chest considered as the place where secret thoughts are kept
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But I shall be even with him.
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.
divisible by two
From this reading "But I shall be even with him.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
excessively quick
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "But I shall be even with him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading "Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
the number that is represented as a one followed by 6 zeros
From this reading "Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
recurring again and again
From this reading "Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading "But I shall be even with him.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading "Etwald!" repeated Lady Meg, thoughtfully.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
venomous Old World snakes characterized by hollow venom-conducting fangs in the upper jaw
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
which person or people
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading I took a viper to my bosom, and it stung me," replied Jen, who, in his excitement, was pacing backward and forward with hasty steps.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Is he not the doctor of whom you have made so great a friend?"
Chapter 16 of For the Defence by Fergus Hume holds 164 sentences, grouped into 33 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 16 holds 164 sentences of For the Defence, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of For the Defence by Fergus Hume exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 164 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
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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.
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About 338 minutes of reading across 813 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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