Chapter IV of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder, “Big O’brien Gets His Biceps into Action,” is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter IV of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder, “Big O’brien Gets His Biceps into Action,” is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_. But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply. Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously. “Oh, that’s all right. You needn’t mistrust me.
Chapter IV of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder, “Big O’brien Gets His Biceps into Action,” is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
having an eye or eyes or eyelike feature especially as specified; often used in combination
From this reading “Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.”
any of various mostly cold-blooded aquatic vertebrates usually having scales and breathing through gills
diurnal bird of prey typically having short rounded wings and a long tail
an aggressive and violent young criminal
From this reading “But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.”
regard as untrustworthy; regard with suspicion; have no faith or confidence in
From this reading “You needn’t mistrust me.”
any new participant in some activity
From this reading “But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.”
with suspicion
From this reading “Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.”
travel through water
From this reading ““By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.”
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.
a man who is very old
In this reading ““By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.”
In this reading “Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.”
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.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “Oh, that’s all right.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
having an eye or eyes or eyelike feature especially as specified; often used in combination
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
any of various mostly cold-blooded aquatic vertebrates usually having scales and breathing through gills
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
diurnal bird of prey typically having short rounded wings and a long tail
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
an aggressive and violent young criminal
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
in place of, or as an alternative to
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
a small worthless amount
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
a boy or man
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading You needn’t mistrust me.
regard as untrustworthy; regard with suspicion; have no faith or confidence in
From this reading You needn’t mistrust me.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You needn’t mistrust me.
any new participant in some activity
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
not any; not one
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, that’s all right.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “Oh, that’s all right.
not in physical motion
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
with suspicion
From this reading Instead, he stood still and eyed Jack suspiciously.
travel through water
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh, that’s all right.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But the newcomer to Hood Island made no reply.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “By jiminy, old man, you certainly can swim,” exclaimed Jack as he reached the lad from the _Fish Hawk_.
Chapter 4 of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder by Irving Crump holds 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 4 holds 212 sentences of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder by Irving Crump exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 4 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 Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder by Irving Crump on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2713 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #61595 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #61595, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 226 minutes of reading across 543 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder 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 Jack Straw, Lighthouse Builder, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
