Chapter 17 of Half A Chance is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Half A Chance is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold. "Yes?" All the color had left her face. "What--what is it?" "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
Chapter 17 of Half A Chance is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
fear resulting from the awareness of danger
From this reading “"Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.”
the activity of keeping something secret
From this reading “"Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.”
a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
From this reading “"Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.”
the sound of knocking (as on a door or in an engine or bearing)
From this reading “AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.”
in a mechanical manner; by a mechanism
From this reading “AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.”
the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading “AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.”
be obedient to
From this reading “AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.”
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading “AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.”
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.
fear resulting from the awareness of danger
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading All the color had left her face.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
react verbally
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
a visual attribute of things that results from the light they emit or transmit or reflect
From this reading All the color had left her face.
the activity of keeping something secret
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
dearly loved
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading All the color had left her face.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
a young female
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading All the color had left her face.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading All the color had left her face.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What--what is it?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "What--what is it?"
the sound of knocking (as on a door or in an engine or bearing)
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading All the color had left her face.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
in a mechanical manner; by a mechanism
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
not any; not one
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
be obedient to
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
recurring again and again
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
in or at or to some place
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
plural of “think” — an instance of deliberate thinking
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
in the direction of
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading AN ANSWER The girl made no motion to obey and the knocking was repeated; mechanically she moved toward the threshold.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What--what is it?"
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Don't mean to alarm you, my dear, but Mr. Gillett thinks the convict might be concealing himself somewhere in the house; indeed, that it is quite likely.
Chapter 17 of Half A Chance by Frederic Stewart Isham holds 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 169 sentences of Half A Chance, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Half A Chance by Frederic Stewart Isham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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.
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Yes. All 4101 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14249 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14249, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 341 minutes of reading across 821 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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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 Half A Chance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
