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Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail
Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail
Context Illustration Reading 1/85 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
He followed more cautiously now.
Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.
Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.
At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.
A moment later he knew that it was smoke.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/85 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
He followed more cautiously now.
/hiː ˈfɑːloʊd mɔːr ˈkɔːʃəsli naʊ/
Line 2
Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.
/əˈnʌðər ˈhʌndrəd jɑːrdz ənd hiː stɑːpt tuː snɪf ðə er/
Line 3
Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.
/əˈhed ʌv hɪm ðə spruːs ənd ˈbɔːlsəm ɡruː kloʊs ənd θɪk ənd frʌm ðæt ˈʃeltər hiː wɑːz ʃʊr ðæt ˈsʌmθɪŋ wɑːz ˈkʌmɪŋ tuː hɪm ɑːn ðə er/
Line 4
At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.
/æt fɜːrst hiː θɔːt ɪt wɑːz ðə ˈoʊdər ʌv ðə ˈbɔːlsəm/
Line 5
A moment later he knew that it was smoke.
/ə ˈmoʊmənt ˈleɪtər hiː nuː ðæt ɪt wɑːz smoʊk/

Learner Dictionary

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.

Ahead adverb US /əˈhed/

at or in the front

From this reading “Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.”

balsam noun US /ˈbɔːlsəm/

any seed plant yielding balsam

From this reading “Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.”

cautiously adverb US /ˈkɔːʃəsli/

as if with kid gloves; with caution or prudence or tact

From this reading “He followed more cautiously now.”

odor noun US /ˈoʊdər/

any property detected by the olfactory system

From this reading “At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.”

shelter noun US /ˈʃeltər/

a structure that provides privacy and protection from danger

From this reading “Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.”

sniff verb US /snɪf/

perceive by inhaling through the nose

From this reading “Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.”

spruce noun US /spruːs/

light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used especially for timbers and millwork

From this reading “Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.”

yards noun US /jɑːrdz/

plural of “yard” — a unit of length equal to 3 feet; defined as 91.44 centimeters; originally taken to be the average length of a stride

From this reading “Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.”

All words in this reading · 40

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.

AdeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading A moment later he knew that it was smoke.

AheadadverbUS /əˈhed/

at or in the front

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

airnounUS /er/

a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

AnotherdeterminerUS /əˈnʌðər/

one more of the same kind, or a different one

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.

balsamnounUS /ˈbɔːlsəm/

any seed plant yielding balsam

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

cautiouslyadverbUS /ˈkɔːʃəsli/

as if with kid gloves; with caution or prudence or tact

From this reading He followed more cautiously now.

closeadjectiveUS /kloʊs/

at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

comingnounUS /ˈkʌmɪŋ/

the act of drawing spatially closer to something

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/

preceding all others in time or space or degree

From this reading At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.

followedverbUS /ˈfɑːloʊd/

past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after

From this reading He followed more cautiously now.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

grewverbUS /ɡruː/

inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He followed more cautiously now.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

hundrednounUS /ˈhʌndrəd/

ten 10s

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.

knewverbUS /nuː/

inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about

From this reading A moment later he knew that it was smoke.

lateradverbUS /ˈleɪtər/

happening at a time subsequent to a reference time

From this reading A moment later he knew that it was smoke.

momentnounUS /ˈmoʊmənt/

a particular point in time

From this reading A moment later he knew that it was smoke.

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading He followed more cautiously now.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading He followed more cautiously now.

odornounUS /ˈoʊdər/

any property detected by the olfactory system

From this reading At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

shelternounUS /ˈʃeltər/

a structure that provides privacy and protection from danger

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

smokenounUS /smoʊk/

a cloud of fine particles suspended in a gas

From this reading A moment later he knew that it was smoke.

sniffverbUS /snɪf/

perceive by inhaling through the nose

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

somethingpronounUS /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

sprucenounUS /spruːs/

light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used especially for timbers and millwork

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

stoppedadjectiveUS /stɑːpt/

(of a nose) blocked

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

sureadjectiveUS /ʃʊr/

having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

thickadjectiveUS /θɪk/

not thin; of a specific thickness or of relatively great extent from one surface to the opposite usually in the smallest of the three solid dimensions

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

thoughtnounUS /θɔːt/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading At first he thought it was the odor of the balsam.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading Ahead of him the spruce and balsam grew close and thick, and from that shelter he was sure that something was coming to him on the air.

yardsnounUS /jɑːrdz/

plural of “yard” — a unit of length equal to 3 feet; defined as 91.44 centimeters; originally taken to be the average length of a stride

From this reading Another hundred yards and he stopped to sniff the air.

Chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail by James Oliver Curwood holds 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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.

What does chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail contain?

Chapter 3 holds 429 sentences of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail by James Oliver Curwood exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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.

How do I study chapter 3 of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail?

Work through the 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 86 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.

Can chapter 3 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 3 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.

Questions about reading Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail

Common questions about reading Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail by James Oliver Curwood on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail?

Yes. All 3830 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6715 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #6715, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail take to read?

About 319 minutes of reading across 766 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail section by section

How to work through Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

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Vocabulary met early in Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail

Words and structures a reader meets early in Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Romance
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Northern
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Trail
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Point
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Isobel : A Romance of the Northern Trail; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.