Chapter 8 of Hector Graeme is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Hector Graeme is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?" "Amusement! Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck? The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say. Amusement—God!"
Chapter 8 of Hector Graeme is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
a feeling of delight at being entertained
From this reading “"You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"”
a roughly cylindrical vessel that is open at the top
From this reading “Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?”
-ing form of “chalk” — write, draw, or trace with chalk
From this reading “Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?”
coming down freely under the influence of gravity
From this reading “Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?”
a resentment strong enough to justify retaliation
From this reading “"You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"”
possessive form of “pig” — domestic swine
plural of “potato” — an edible tuber native to South America; a staple food of Ireland
From this reading “Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.”
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 “Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?”
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 Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
a feeling of delight at being entertained
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
a roughly cylindrical vessel that is open at the top
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
tending to find and call attention to faults
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
-ing form of “chalk” — write, draw, or trace with chalk
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
coming down freely under the influence of gravity
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
the organ of sight
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading Amusement—God!"
a resentment strong enough to justify retaliation
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
used to form the superlative
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
possessive form of “pig” — domestic swine
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
plural of “potato” — an edible tuber native to South America; a staple food of Ireland
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
express in words
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Dropping potatoes into a bucket or chalking a pig’s eye on the deck?
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading The swine’s an unclean animal to most of them too, I should say.
precisely as stated
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You’re very captious this afternoon, why grudge those people their amusement?"
Chapter 8 of Hector Graeme by Evelyn Brentwood holds 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 8 holds 407 sentences of Hector Graeme, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Hector Graeme by Evelyn Brentwood exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 8 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 Hector Graeme by Evelyn Brentwood on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5746 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46833 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46833, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 478 minutes of reading across 1150 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Hector Graeme section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of Hector Graeme 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 Hector Graeme, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
