Chapter 9 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS. HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED. DELIRIUM TREMENS. HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED. POLICE!
Chapter 9 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment
From this reading “HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.”
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading “HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.”
plural of “chestnut” — wood of any of various chestnut trees of the genus Castanea
From this reading “HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.”
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading “HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.”
state of violent mental agitation
From this reading “DELIRIUM TREMENS.”
plural of “horror” — intense and profound fear
From this reading “HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.”
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading “POLICE!”
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading “HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.”
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 “HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.”
In this reading “HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.”
In this reading “HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.”
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 HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
plural of “chestnut” — wood of any of various chestnut trees of the genus Castanea
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
state of violent mental agitation
From this reading DELIRIUM TREMENS.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
plural of “horror” — intense and profound fear
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading HOW LIZARANN ATE COLD CHESTNUTS IN BED.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading POLICE!
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DELIRIUM TREMENS.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading HOW UNCLE BOB HAD THE HORRORS.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading HOW JIM COULD SEE AT NIGHT, AND WAS UNDER THE BED.
Chapter 9 of It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan holds 402 sentences, grouped into 81 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 9 holds 402 sentences of It Never Can Happen Again, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 402 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 9 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 It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 19361 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46228 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46228, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3873 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through It Never Can Happen Again section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of It Never Can Happen Again 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 It Never Can Happen Again, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
