Chapter 4 of Highacres is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Highacres is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair! You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!" Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair. "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly. "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
Chapter 4 of Highacres is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
long strip of cloth or paper used for decoration or advertising
From this reading “"I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.”
delicately beautiful
From this reading “Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.”
(sometimes offensive) an act of swindling or cheating
From this reading “THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!”
the part of a gunlock that strikes the percussion cap when the trigger is pulled
From this reading “"Here, Tib, put the hammer away.”
support consisting of a branch or rod that serves as a resting place (especially for a bird)
From this reading “Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.”
with little or no delay
From this reading “Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.”
possessive form of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.”
a loose temporary sewing stitch to hold layers of fabric together
From this reading “"I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.”
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 “Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.”
In this reading “You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"”
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.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
long strip of cloth or paper used for decoration or advertising
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
in an ill-natured manner
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
delicately beautiful
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
(sometimes offensive) an act of swindling or cheating
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
the part of a gunlock that strikes the percussion cap when the trigger is pulled
From this reading "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
and nothing more
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
support consisting of a branch or rod that serves as a resting place (especially for a bird)
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
with little or no delay
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
precisely, exactly
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
possessive form of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
be standing; be upright
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
happening without warning or in a short space of time
From this reading Miss Gyp, startled by her sister's sudden appearance at her door, fell promptly from her perch on the dainty chintz-cushioned chair.
a loose temporary sewing stitch to hold layers of fabric together
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
a unit of information equal to 1024 gibibytes or 2^40 (1,099,511,627,776) bytes
From this reading "Here, Tib, put the hammer away.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "I was only tacking up my new banner," she answered crossly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WESTLEYS "Gyp Westley, get right down off from that chair!
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You _know_ mother doesn't want you to stand on it!"
Chapter 4 of Highacres by Jane Abbott holds 137 sentences, grouped into 28 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 4 holds 137 sentences of Highacres, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Highacres by Jane Abbott exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 137 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 4 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 Highacres by Jane Abbott on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3927 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29865 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29865, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 327 minutes of reading across 786 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Highacres section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Highacres 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 Highacres, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
