Chapter 24 of In the Van is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIV
Chapter 24 of In the Van is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again. "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule. "Yes," she replied. "I hope to send them away when the lake opens." "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
Chapter 24 of In the Van is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/24 · 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 “fold” — bend or lay so that one part covers the other
From this reading “"Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.”
(Greek mythology) the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda who was abducted by Paris; the Greek army sailed to Troy to get her back which resulted in the Trojan War
From this reading “The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.”
transmit (a signal) for setting off an appropriate response, as in telecommunication
From this reading “The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.”
plural of “open” — a clear or unobstructed space or expanse of land or water
From this reading “"I hope to send them away when the lake opens."”
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading “"Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.”
any broad thin expanse or surface
From this reading “"Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.”
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading “"Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.”
inflected form of “wag” — move from side to side
From this reading “"Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.”
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 “The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.”
move out of or depart from
In this reading “The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.”
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 woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
anew
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
past form of “fold” — bend or lay so that one part covers the other
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
the act of departing
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
(Greek mythology) the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda who was abducted by Paris; the Greek army sailed to Troy to get her back which resulted in the Trojan War
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
transmit (a signal) for setting off an appropriate response, as in telecommunication
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
a body of (usually fresh) water surrounded by land
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
the literary culture
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
plural of “open” — a clear or unobstructed space or expanse of land or water
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "Yes," she replied.
a woman's drawstring handbag; usually made of net or beading or brocade; used in 18th and 19th centuries
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
cause to go somewhere
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
any broad thin expanse or surface
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
inflected form of “wag” — move from side to side
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
at the time that
From this reading "I hope to send them away when the lake opens."
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
the act of creating written works
From this reading The woman went out to interrogate her husband, and Helen returned to her writing, but in a few minutes Latimer came in again.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes," she replied.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Is them letters you are at?" he asked, as she folded a sheet and slipped it into her reticule.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Your post will be long in going," he said, wagging his head.
Chapter 24 of In the Van by John Price-Brown holds 120 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 holds 120 sentences of In the Van, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 24 of In the Van by John Price-Brown exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 120 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 24 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 the Van by John Price-Brown on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5208 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35203 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35203, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 434 minutes of reading across 1042 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through In the Van section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of In the Van 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 the Van, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
