Chapter 40 of In Search of the Castaways is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of In Search of the Castaways is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht. The scene which followed, who can describe? Language fails. The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace. The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
Chapter 40 of In Search of the Castaways is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/61 · 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.
past form of “clasp” — hold firmly and tightly
From this reading “The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.”
give a description of
From this reading “The scene which followed, who can describe?”
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading “The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.”
third-person singular of “fail” — fail to do something; leave something undone
From this reading “Language fails.”
inflected form of “kneel” — rest one's weight on one's knees
From this reading “The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.”
with reverence; in a reverent manner
From this reading “The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.”
inflected form of “weep” — shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain
From this reading “The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.”
an expensive vessel propelled by sail or power and used for cruising or racing
From this reading “JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.”
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 The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
using the voice; not silently
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
the two together, not just one
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
past form of “clasp” — hold firmly and tightly
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
the men and women who man a vehicle (ship, aircraft, etc.)
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
give a description of
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
third-person singular of “fail” — fail to do something; leave something undone
From this reading Language fails.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
let have
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
inflected form of “kneel” — rest one's weight on one's knees
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading Language fails.
a particular point in time
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
freed from illness or injury
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
with reverence; in a reverent manner
From this reading The moment Harry Grant came on deck, he knelt down reverently.
the place where some action occurs
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
an instance of visual perception
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
marked by absence of sound
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
inflected form of “weep” — shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
which person or people
From this reading The scene which followed, who can describe?
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading The whole crew wept aloud at the sight of these three clasped together in a close, silent embrace.
an expensive vessel propelled by sail or power and used for cruising or racing
From this reading JOY does not kill, for both father and children recovered before they had reached the yacht.
Chapter 40 of In Search of the Castaways by Jules Verne holds 308 sentences, grouped into 62 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 40 holds 308 sentences of In Search of the Castaways, unabridged, divided into 62 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of In Search of the Castaways by Jules Verne exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 308 sentences, grouped into 62 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 62 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 62 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 40 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 In Search of the Castaways by Jules Verne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9519 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2083 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2083, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1904 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through In Search of the Castaways section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of In Search of the Castaways 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 In Search of the Castaways, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
