Chapter 11 of In Search of the Unknown is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of In Search of the Unknown is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.' "The car creaked and trembled. I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke. Then my hair rose on my head. For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
Chapter 11 of In Search of the Unknown is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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 motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading “"The car creaked and trembled.”
past form of “creak” — make a high-pitched, screeching noise
From this reading “"The car creaked and trembled.”
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading “"'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'”
filled or abounding with fog or mist
From this reading “"'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'”
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading “"'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'”
possessing sweep
From this reading “I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.”
past form of “tremble” — move or jerk quickly and involuntarily up and down or sideways
From this reading “"The car creaked and trembled.”
a garment that covers the head and face
From this reading “I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "The car creaked and trembled.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading "The car creaked and trembled.
past form of “creak” — make a high-pitched, screeching noise
From this reading "The car creaked and trembled.
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
opinion or judgment
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading Then my hair rose on my head.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Then my hair rose on my head.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
filled or abounding with fog or mist
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Then my hair rose on my head.
a cloud of fine particles suspended in a gas
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
possessing sweep
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then my hair rose on my head.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
having come into contact
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
create by training and teaching
From this reading "'It can't be,' I muttered, my eyes fixed on the misty drapery; 'the train has not stopped.'
past form of “tremble” — move or jerk quickly and involuntarily up and down or sideways
From this reading "The car creaked and trembled.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading For my hand touched another hand, and my eyes had met two other eyes.
a garment that covers the head and face
From this reading I sprang to my feet and swept my arm through the veil of smoke.
Chapter 11 of In Search of the Unknown by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 11 holds 419 sentences of In Search of the Unknown, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of In Search of the Unknown by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 11 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 Unknown by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4702 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18668 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18668, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 391 minutes of reading across 941 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through In Search of the Unknown section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of In Search of the Unknown 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 Unknown, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
