Chapter 36 of Helping Himself is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVI
Chapter 36 of Helping Himself is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house. “Where are you going?” she inquired. “I can't tell you definitely.” “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?” “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
Chapter 36 of Helping Himself is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/13 · 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.
not being in a specified place
From this reading ““I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.”
without question and beyond doubt
From this reading ““I can't tell you definitely.””
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading ““Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?””
let have
From this reading ““I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.”
a servant who is employed to perform domestic task in a household
From this reading ““I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.”
the act of pressing; the exertion of pressure
From this reading ““No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.””
English portrait painter and first president of the Royal Academy (1723-1792)
From this reading ““Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?””
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading ““No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.””
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 “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
not being in a specified place
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I can't tell you definitely.”
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
without question and beyond doubt
From this reading “I can't tell you definitely.”
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
the act of departing
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
let have
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
a servant who is employed to perform domestic task in a household
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
a form of address for a man
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
not any; not one
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
the act of pressing; the exertion of pressure
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
English portrait painter and first president of the Royal Academy (1723-1792)
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
express in words
From this reading “I can't tell you definitely.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
up to a particular time
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I shall be absent for a few days, Mrs. Estabrook,” said Grant to the housekeeper, as he entered the house.
precisely as stated
From this reading “No; business is not very pressing in the office, and I can be spared.”
stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading “Hadn't you better wait till Mr. Reynolds gets back?”
in or at the place that
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Where are you going?” she inquired.
Chapter 36 of Helping Himself by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 66 sentences, grouped into 14 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 36 holds 66 sentences of Helping Himself, unabridged, divided into 14 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 36 of Helping Himself by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 66 sentences, grouped into 14 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 14 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 14 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 36 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 4051 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5833 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5833, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 337 minutes of reading across 811 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Helping Himself section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Helping Himself 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 Helping Himself, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
