Chapter 9 of John Baring's House is here in full — 259 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of John Baring's House is here in full — 259 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day. But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined. Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write. Herbert shook his head. “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
Chapter 9 of John Baring's House is here in full — 259 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/51 · 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.
past form of “growl” — to utter or emit low dull rumbling sounds
From this reading ““She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.”
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading “HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.”
a thin cylindrical pointed writing implement; a rod of marking substance encased in wood
From this reading “Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.”
plural of “put” — the option to sell a given stock (or stock index or commodity future) at a given price before a given date
From this reading “HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.”
all of your experiences that determine how things appear to you
From this reading “HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.”
a short piece remaining on a trunk or stem where a branch is lost
From this reading “Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.”
comparative of “weak” — wanting in physical strength
From this reading “But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.”
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 “Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.”
In this reading “But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.”
In this reading “But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.”
In this reading “HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.”
used to imply that one would expect the fact to be the opposite of that stated; surprisingly
In this reading “HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.”
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 HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
characterized by great determination
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
past form of “growl” — to utter or emit low dull rumbling sounds
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Herbert shook his head.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Herbert shook his head.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a thin cylindrical pointed writing implement; a rod of marking substance encased in wood
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
plural of “put” — the option to sell a given stock (or stock index or commodity future) at a given price before a given date
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
all of your experiences that determine how things appear to you
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
(used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading Herbert shook his head.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a short piece remaining on a trunk or stem where a branch is lost
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
precisely as stated
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
comparative of “weak” — wanting in physical strength
From this reading But as he grew weaker, he grew more determined.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading HERBERT PUTS TWO AND TWO TOGETHER Herbert had been in reality left almost without food for a day.
produce a literary work
From this reading Several times Sheldon brought him the soiled paper and the stub of pencil and asked him to write.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “She ain’t got help for you very fast,” growled Sheldon.
Chapter 9 of John Baring's House by Elsie Singmaster holds 259 sentences, grouped into 52 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 259 sentences of John Baring's House, unabridged, divided into 52 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of John Baring's House by Elsie Singmaster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 259 sentences, grouped into 52 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 52 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 52 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 John Baring's House by Elsie Singmaster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2100 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56416 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56416, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 175 minutes of reading across 420 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through John Baring's House section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of John Baring's House 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 John Baring's House, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
