Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Four Young Explorers
Four Young Explorers

Chapter IX

Cover illustration for Four Young Explorers
Context Illustration Reading 1/47 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.
The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.
Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.
The day was done, and it was growing dark.
It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Four Young Explorers

Chapter IX

Reading 1/47 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.
Line 2
The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.
Line 3
Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.
Line 4
The day was done, and it was growing dark.
Line 5
It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Another noun US /ˈanother/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.”

Done noun US /done/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The day was done, and it was growing dark.”

Morning noun US /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.”

Next noun US /next/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.”

Party noun US /party/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.”

Perhaps noun US /perhaps/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.”

Seemed noun US /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.”

All words in this reading · 59

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

All

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

anchor

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

anothernounUS /ˈanother/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

ASTOUNDING

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

away

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

big

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

biting

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

cabin

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

CAPTAIN'S

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

caught

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

clear

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

condition

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

dark

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The day was done, and it was growing dark.

day

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The day was done, and it was growing dark.

decided

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

deep

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

donenounUS /done/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The day was done, and it was growing dark.

fish

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

fished

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

growing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The day was done, and it was growing dark.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

hole

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

hoped

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading The day was done, and it was growing dark.

lines

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

morningnounUS /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

Morris's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

nextnounUS /next/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

night

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

others

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

out

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

partynounUS /party/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

Perhaps

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

place

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

PROPOSITION

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

scared

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

seemednounUS /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

seen

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

spend

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

struggle

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

there

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION All the cabin party had their lines out, but not another fish was caught.

water

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.

whereconjunctionUS /wer/

in or at the place that

From this reading The place where they fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep and clear.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big fish had scared the others away, for not another could be seen.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading It was decided to anchor where they were, and spend the night there; and they hoped the fish would be in biting condition the next morning.