Chapter 16 of King Coal is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of King Coal is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Jerry turned to Hal. What did he think? And so at last Hal had to speak. It was hard for him to judge, he said. He knew so little about labour matters.
Chapter 16 of King Coal is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading “It was hard for him to judge, he said.”
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading “Jerry turned to Hal.”
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading “It was hard for him to judge, he said.”
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “He knew so little about labour matters.”
a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
From this reading “He knew so little about labour matters.”
plural of “matter” — a vaguely specified concern
From this reading “He knew so little about labour matters.”
express in speech
From this reading “And so at last Hal had to speak.”
moved around an axis or center
From this reading “Jerry turned to Hal.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading He knew so little about labour matters.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading What did he think?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Jerry turned to Hal.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading What did he think?
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading Jerry turned to Hal.
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading He knew so little about labour matters.
a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
From this reading He knew so little about labour matters.
immediately past
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He knew so little about labour matters.
plural of “matter” — a vaguely specified concern
From this reading He knew so little about labour matters.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
express in speech
From this reading And so at last Hal had to speak.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading What did he think?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Jerry turned to Hal.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Jerry turned to Hal.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was hard for him to judge, he said.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What did he think?
Chapter 16 of King Coal by Upton Sinclair holds 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 16 holds 414 sentences of King Coal, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of King Coal by Upton Sinclair exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 16 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 King Coal by Upton Sinclair on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8149 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #7522 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #7522, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1630 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through King Coal section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of King Coal 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 King Coal, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
