Chapter XIV of Joe Strong, the boy wizard, “Joe’s Disappearance,” is here in full — 97 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter XIV of Joe Strong, the boy wizard, “Joe’s Disappearance,” is here in full — 97 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick. “You don’t mind being made to vanish?” “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.” The audience laughed. Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
Chapter XIV of Joe Strong, the boy wizard, “Joe’s Disappearance,” is here in full — 97 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/19 · 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.
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading “The audience laughed.”
be the source of pain
From this reading ““No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.””
plausible glib talk (especially useful to a salesperson)
From this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
From this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
in a surprising manner
From this reading “Joe was getting on surprisingly well.”
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
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.
nowhere to be found in a giant void
In this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
In this reading ““You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.”
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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading The audience laughed.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You don’t mind being made to vanish?”
the act of acquiring something
From this reading Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
be the source of pain
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading The audience laughed.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “You don’t mind being made to vanish?”
not any; not one
From this reading “No,” answered Joe, “not if it doesn’t hurt.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
plausible glib talk (especially useful to a salesperson)
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
in a surprising manner
From this reading Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Joe was getting on surprisingly well.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You’re not afraid to be made to vanish into thin air, are you?” asked Professor Rosello of Joe, that being part of the “patter” of this trick.
Chapter 14 of Joe Strong, the boy wizard by Vance Barnum holds 97 sentences, grouped into 20 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 14 holds 97 sentences of Joe Strong, the boy wizard, unabridged, divided into 20 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of Joe Strong, the boy wizard by Vance Barnum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 97 sentences, grouped into 20 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 20 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 20 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 14 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.
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