Chapter 11 of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them. Where are you?" "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath. "But where?" hissed his mother. "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
Chapter 11 of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading “"I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.”
absence of light or illumination
From this reading “"I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.”
go or come after and bring or take back
From this reading “"Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.”
past form of “hiss” — make a sharp hissing sound, as if to show disapproval
From this reading “"But where?" hissed his mother.”
a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading “"I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.”
come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority
From this reading “"I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.”
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading “"I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"”
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading “"I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.”
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 “"Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.”
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.
higher than, or over, something
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Where are you?"
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
go or come after and bring or take back
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
past form of “hiss” — make a sharp hissing sound, as if to show disapproval
From this reading "But where?" hissed his mother.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
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 "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading "But where?" hissed his mother.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
express in speech
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
express in words
From this reading "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
in or at the place that
From this reading Where are you?"
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I am here," whispered Jean, whom the darkness seemed to oppress, so that he could not speak above his breath.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
an affirmative
From this reading "Ah, yes; and I left them in the other place; but I will fetch them.
but in spite of that
From this reading "I cannot tell, not yet; where is the stone?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Where are you?"
Chapter 11 of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes by George Manville Fenn holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 11 holds 403 sentences of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes by George Manville Fenn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 11 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 Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes by George Manville Fenn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4623 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35367 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35367, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 385 minutes of reading across 925 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes 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 Mad: A Story of Dust and Ashes, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
