Chapter 21 of John Brent is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of John Brent is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
LUGGERNEL SPRINGS. “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting. Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake? “Her! see to her!” he moaned. I unbound her from the saddle.
Chapter 21 of John Brent is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
small dark geese that breed in the north and migrate southward
From this reading ““I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.”
-ing form of “faint” — pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
From this reading ““I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.”
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading ““I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.”
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading ““Her! see to her!” he moaned.”
put a saddle on
From this reading “I unbound her from the saddle.”
people who have been slain (as in battle)
From this reading “Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?”
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading “LUGGERNEL SPRINGS.”
Released from physical or magical bonds; free and unrestricted.
From this reading “I unbound her from the saddle.”
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 ““I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.”
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.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
small dark geese that breed in the north and migrate southward
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
-ing form of “faint” — pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading I unbound her from the saddle.
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Her! see to her!” he moaned.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LUGGERNEL SPRINGS.
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading “Her! see to her!” he moaned.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
by chance
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
put a saddle on
From this reading I unbound her from the saddle.
a reason for wanting something done
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
inflected form of “sink” — fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “Her! see to her!” he moaned.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading “I am shot,” gasped Brent, and sank down fainting.
people who have been slain (as in battle)
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading LUGGERNEL SPRINGS.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Her! see to her!” he moaned.
Released from physical or magical bonds; free and unrestricted.
From this reading I unbound her from the saddle.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Which first? the lady, or my friend, slain perhaps for her sake?
Chapter 21 of John Brent by Theodore Winthrop holds 170 sentences, grouped into 34 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 21 holds 170 sentences of John Brent, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of John Brent by Theodore Winthrop exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 170 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 21 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 Brent by Theodore Winthrop on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5312 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #73738 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #73738, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 442 minutes of reading across 1063 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through John Brent section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of John Brent 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 Brent, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
