Chapter 1 of I, Executioner is here in full — 247 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of I, Executioner is here in full — 247 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty. The doomed felon is--myself! I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier. And despite the heavy knot in my stomach. I felt strangely empty.
Chapter 1 of I, Executioner is here in full — 247 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/49 · 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 particular environment or walk of life
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
an official who inflicts capital punishment in pursuit of a warrant
From this reading “I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.”
someone who has committed a crime or has been legally convicted of a crime
From this reading “The doomed felon is--myself!”
plural of “knot” — a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
salty fluid secreted by sweat glands
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
engagingly stimulating or provocative
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
having the beard or hair cut off close to the skin
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
(psychology) a state of mental or emotional strain or suspense
From this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
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 “I felt strangely empty.”
appear or become visible; make a showing
In this reading “I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.”
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 always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
a particular environment or walk of life
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
although something is true; in spite of
From this reading And despite the heavy knot in my stomach.
marked for certain death
From this reading The doomed felon is--myself!
earlier in time; previously
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
make void or empty of contents
From this reading I felt strangely empty.
an official who inflicts capital punishment in pursuit of a warrant
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
someone who has committed a crime or has been legally convicted of a crime
From this reading The doomed felon is--myself!
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading I felt strangely empty.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading And despite the heavy knot in my stomach.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The doomed felon is--myself!
a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading And despite the heavy knot in my stomach.
plural of “knot” — a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
the collection of rules imposed by authority
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
impressiveness in scale or proportion
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading The doomed felon is--myself!
the part of an organism (human or animal) that connects the head to the rest of the body
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
and nothing more
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
above and across; more than
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
causing physical or psychological pain
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
salty fluid secreted by sweat glands
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
engagingly stimulating or provocative
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
having the beard or hair cut off close to the skin
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
an enlarged and muscular saclike organ of the alimentary canal; the principal organ of digestion
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
in a strange manner
From this reading I felt strangely empty.
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
(psychology) a state of mental or emotional strain or suspense
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I am the executioner of the law, terrible in my majesty.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
at the time that
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
in or at the place that
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
covered with or as if with clothes or a wrap or cloak
From this reading I always shook when I came out of the Arena, but this time the tension wrapped my stomach in painful knots and salty perspiration stung my neck where I had shaved only a little over an hour earlier.
Chapter 1 of I, Executioner by Ted White holds 247 sentences, grouped into 50 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 1 holds 247 sentences of I, Executioner, unabridged, divided into 50 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of I, Executioner by Ted White exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 247 sentences, grouped into 50 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 50 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 50 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 1 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 I, Executioner by Ted White on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 247 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #61335 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #61335, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 20 minutes of reading across 50 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through I, Executioner section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of I, Executioner 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 I, Executioner, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
