Chapter 4 of Homestead Ranch is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Homestead Ranch is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen. But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest. How could they hide so quickly without flying? The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them! No, there they were now!
Chapter 4 of Homestead Ranch is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/46 · 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.
plural of “chick” — young bird especially of domestic fowl
From this reading “The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!”
leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading “The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!”
the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles
From this reading “But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.”
moving swiftly
From this reading “How could they hide so quickly without flying?”
adult female chicken
From this reading “For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.”
prevent from being seen or discovered
From this reading “How could they hide so quickly without flying?”
made greater in size or amount or degree
From this reading “But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.”
a mentor in spiritual and philosophical topics who is renowned for profound wisdom
From this reading “For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.”
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 “For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.”
In this reading “For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.”
In this reading “The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!”
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.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
a small piece or quantity of something
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
plural of “chick” — young bird especially of domestic fowl
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
moving swiftly
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
adult female chicken
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
prevent from being seen or discovered
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
made greater in size or amount or degree
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
not any; not one
From this reading No, there they were now!
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading No, there they were now!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
and nothing more
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
with speed
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
a mentor in spiritual and philosophical topics who is renowned for profound wisdom
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
perception by means of the eyes
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
a natural body of running water flowing on or under the earth
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
in or at that place or location
From this reading No, there they were now!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading How could they hide so quickly without flying?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading But this bit of discouragement only increased her interest.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading For some minutes Harry walked along the stream without seeing or hearing the sage hen.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The chicks were too young to fly and surely the hen would not desert them!
Chapter 4 of Homestead Ranch by Elizabeth G. Young holds 233 sentences, grouped into 47 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 233 sentences of Homestead Ranch, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Homestead Ranch by Elizabeth G. Young exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 233 sentences, grouped into 47 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 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 47 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 Homestead Ranch by Elizabeth G. Young on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5397 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63389 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63389, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 449 minutes of reading across 1080 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Homestead Ranch section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of Homestead Ranch 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 Homestead Ranch, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
