Chapter 1 of If at First You Don't... is here in full — 527 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of If at First You Don't... is here in full — 527 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ... _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable. There were rules for everything, weren't there....
Chapter 1 of If at First You Don't... is here in full — 527 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/105 · 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 Hebrew shepherd and minor prophet
From this reading “_To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.”
a document granting exclusive right to publish and sell literary or musical or artistic work
From this reading “Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.”
a river in Palestine that empties into the Dead Sea; John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan
From this reading “_To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.”
the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place
From this reading “_To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.”
a copy of a printed work offered for distribution
From this reading “Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.”
systematic investigation to establish facts
From this reading “Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.”
remove all or part of one's clothes to show one's body
From this reading “Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.”
not easily solved
From this reading “_To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.”
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 “Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
surprising greatly
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
a Hebrew shepherd and minor prophet
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ...
situated between the earth and the moon
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
a document granting exclusive right to publish and sell literary or musical or artistic work
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ...
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading There were rules for everything, weren't there....
your basis for belief or disbelief; knowledge on which to base belief
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
large in spatial extent or range or scope or quantity
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ...
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ...
a river in Palestine that empties into the Dead Sea; John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
not any; not one
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
past form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
a copy of a printed work offered for distribution
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
restored to a new condition
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
systematic investigation to establish facts
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
plural of “rule” — a principle or condition that customarily governs behavior
From this reading There were rules for everything, weren't there....
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
a person who is head of an administrative department of government
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
plural of “story” — a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There were rules for everything, weren't there....
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
a base containing nitrogen that is found in RNA (but not in DNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
remove all or part of one's clothes to show one's body
From this reading Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.
not easily solved
From this reading _To Amos Jordan, Secretary for Cislunar Navigation, no situation was unsolvable.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This etext was produced from _Amazing Stories_ June, 1960.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There were rules for everything, weren't there....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were rules for everything, weren't there....
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T ...
Chapter 1 of If at First You Don't... by John Brudy holds 527 sentences, grouped into 106 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 527 sentences of If at First You Don't..., unabridged, divided into 106 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of If at First You Don't... by John Brudy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 527 sentences, grouped into 106 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 106 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 106 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 If at First You Don't... by John Brudy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 527 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31009 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31009, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 43 minutes of reading across 106 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through If at First You Don't... section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of If at First You Don't... 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 If at First You Don't..., each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
