Chapter 26 of Heart of the West is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVI
Chapter 26 of Heart of the West is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits. He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise. He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation. While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely. That was always an ominous act.
Chapter 26 of Heart of the West is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning
From this reading “He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.”
(Greek mythology) the Muse of epic poetry
From this reading “Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.”
changeable
From this reading “He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.”
past form of “chew” — chew (food); to bite and grind with the teeth
From this reading “While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.”
any of several small spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis having small flowers in axillary cylindrical spikes followed by large pods rich in sugar
From this reading “While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.”
a native inhabitant of the Occident
From this reading “He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.”
plural of “signal” — any nonverbal action or gesture that encodes a message
From this reading “Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.”
plural of “twig” — a small branch or division of a branch (especially a terminal division); usually applied to branches of the current or preceding year
From this reading “While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
the event of one object coming closer to another
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.
(Greek mythology) the Muse of epic poetry
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
changeable
From this reading He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.
past form of “chew” — chew (food); to bite and grind with the teeth
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
the use of speech for informal exchange of views or ideas or information etc.
From this reading He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.
a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He had become capricious and fault-finding in conversation.
past form of “kick” — drive or propel with the foot
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
plural of “leaf” — the main organ of photosynthesis and transpiration in higher plants
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
any of several small spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis having small flowers in axillary cylindrical spikes followed by large pods rich in sugar
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
a native inhabitant of the Occident
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
many times at short intervals
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
above and across; more than
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
plural of “signal” — any nonverbal action or gesture that encodes a message
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented
From this reading Over night Calliope had hung out signals of approaching low spirits.
-ing form of “stroll” — walk leisurely and with no apparent aim
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He had kicked his own dog on the porch of the Occidental Hotel, and refused to apologise.
plural of “twig” — a small branch or division of a branch (especially a terminal division); usually applied to branches of the current or preceding year
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That was always an ominous act.
during the time that
From this reading While strolling about he reached often for twigs of mesquite and chewed the leaves fiercely.
Chapter 26 of Heart of the West by O. Henry holds 197 sentences, grouped into 40 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 26 holds 197 sentences of Heart of the West, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 26 of Heart of the West by O. Henry exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 197 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 26 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 Heart of the West by O. Henry on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5041 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1725 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1725, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 420 minutes of reading across 1009 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Heart of the West section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of Heart of the West 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 Heart of the West, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
