Chapter 17 of Frank Merriwell's Alarm is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Frank Merriwell's Alarm is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BROTHER AND SISTER. "There's a light ahead, Harry!" Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours. Rattleton was greatly agitated. "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
Chapter 17 of Frank Merriwell's Alarm is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
troubled emotionally and usually deeply
From this reading “Rattleton was greatly agitated.”
A large, vast underground cave, often filled with forgotten ancient treasures.
From this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
(of persons) excessively affected by emotion
From this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
to an extraordinary extent or degree
From this reading “Rattleton was greatly agitated.”
acting with uncertainty or hesitance or lack of confidence
From this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
past form of “pant” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading “"It is a light, sure!" he panted.”
communicated in words
From this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
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 “Rattleton was greatly agitated.”
In this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
In this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
In this reading “Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.”
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 "There's a light ahead, Harry!"
later than; following
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
troubled emotionally and usually deeply
From this reading Rattleton was greatly agitated.
at or in the front
From this reading "There's a light ahead, Harry!"
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading BROTHER AND SISTER.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading BROTHER AND SISTER.
A large, vast underground cave, often filled with forgotten ancient treasures.
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
(of persons) excessively affected by emotion
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
to an extraordinary extent or degree
From this reading Rattleton was greatly agitated.
acting with uncertainty or hesitance or lack of confidence
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading "There's a light ahead, Harry!"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading "There's a light ahead, Harry!"
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
past form of “pant” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Rattleton was greatly agitated.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading BROTHER AND SISTER.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "It is a light, sure!" he panted.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "There's a light ahead, Harry!"
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
communicated in words
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Rattleton was greatly agitated.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
the words that are spoken
From this reading Frank uttered the words in an excited whisper, after they had been groping their way through the darkness of the great cavern for what seemed to be many hours.
Chapter 17 of Frank Merriwell's Alarm by Burt L. Standish holds 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 17 holds 109 sentences of Frank Merriwell's Alarm, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Frank Merriwell's Alarm by Burt L. Standish exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 17 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 Frank Merriwell's Alarm by Burt L. Standish on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4186 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38429 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38429, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 348 minutes of reading across 838 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Frank Merriwell's Alarm section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Frank Merriwell's Alarm 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 Frank Merriwell's Alarm, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
