Chapter 12 of Gargoyles is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Gargoyles is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Then he would picture himself returning home with his children. He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing. Back from the grave with his children.... The house empty of Henrietta. The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
Chapter 12 of Gargoyles is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
-ing form of “dictate” — issue commands or orders for
From this reading “He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.”
make void or empty of contents
From this reading “The house empty of Henrietta.”
something many people believe that is false
From this reading “He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.”
death of a person
From this reading “Back from the grave with his children....”
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading “Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.”
tending to return to an earlier state
From this reading “Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.”
fastened with stitches
From this reading “The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.”
the act of creating written works
From this reading “He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.”
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 “Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.”
In this reading “He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.”
In this reading “Back from the grave with his children....”
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.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Back from the grave with his children....
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
-ing form of “dictate” — issue commands or orders for
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
make void or empty of contents
From this reading The house empty of Henrietta.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
something many people believe that is false
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Back from the grave with his children....
death of a person
From this reading Back from the grave with his children....
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house empty of Henrietta.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading The house empty of Henrietta.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
without warmth
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The house empty of Henrietta.
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
participate in games or sport
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
tending to return to an earlier state
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
fastened with stitches
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The chair in which she always sat and sewed, empty.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Then he would picture himself returning home with his children.
the act of creating written works
From this reading He would close his eyes and play with the fancy impersonally, as if he were dictating it for writing.
Chapter 12 of Gargoyles by Ben Hecht holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 12 holds 419 sentences of Gargoyles, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Gargoyles by Ben Hecht exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 12 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 Gargoyles by Ben Hecht on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8277 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38489 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38489, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1656 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Gargoyles section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Gargoyles 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 Gargoyles, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
