Chapter 8 of Isles of the sea is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Isles of the sea is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE VILLE D’ANGERS. “Help, help! Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers. As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance. He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
Chapter 8 of Isles of the sea is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
the property created by the space between two objects or points
From this reading “Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.”
to extremes
From this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
plural of “second” — 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
out of your own free will
From this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
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 “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
In this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
In this reading “Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.”
In this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
In this reading “He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.”
In this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
In this reading “As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.”
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 He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
later than; following
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE VILLE D’ANGERS.
the property created by the space between two objects or points
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
a young female
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “Help, help!
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
and nothing more
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
to extremes
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
except for; apart from
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
plural of “second” — 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading He had struck the water only a few seconds after she sprang overboard, and she could not be at any great distance from him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE VILLE D’ANGERS.
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
male cat
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE VILLE D’ANGERS.
out of your own free will
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading Save me!” cried Miss Rodwood in the water, at some distance from Tom Speers.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading As the girl had voluntarily thrown herself into the sea, Tom could not understand why she called for assistance.
Chapter 8 of Isles of the sea by Oliver Optic holds 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 8 holds 202 sentences of Isles of the sea, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Isles of the sea by Oliver Optic exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 8 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 Isles of the sea by Oliver Optic on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4955 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #74943 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #74943, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 412 minutes of reading across 991 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Isles of the sea section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of Isles of the sea 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 Isles of the sea, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
