Chapter 9 of Madge Morton's Secret is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Madge Morton's Secret is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it." Flora Harris spoke under her breath. Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel. The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her. "I can't do it," he protested.
Chapter 9 of Madge Morton's Secret is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
aimlessly drifting
From this reading “ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."”
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading “ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."”
a special group delegated to consider some matter
From this reading “The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.”
kill as a means of socially sanctioned punishment
From this reading “The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.”
all the plant life in a particular region or period
From this reading “Flora Harris spoke under her breath.”
United States author who wrote the stories about Uncle Remus (1848-1908)
From this reading “Flora Harris spoke under her breath.”
in a stubborn unregenerate manner
From this reading “The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.”
American architect (1759-1828)
From this reading “ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."”
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 The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
aimlessly drifting
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
later than; following
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
an indentation of a shoreline larger than a cove but smaller than a gulf
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I can't do it," he protested.
definite but not specified or identified
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
a special group delegated to consider some matter
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
kill as a means of socially sanctioned punishment
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
all the plant life in a particular region or period
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
a movable barrier in a fence or wall
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
United States author who wrote the stories about Uncle Remus (1848-1908)
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I can't do it," he protested.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I can't do it," he protested.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
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 Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
past form of “protest” — utter words of protest
From this reading "I can't do it," he protested.
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
express in words
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
in a stubborn unregenerate manner
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Half an hour had passed since she and Alfred Thornton had left the hotel.
American architect (1759-1828)
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading Flora Harris spoke under her breath.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading ADRIFT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY "Alfred Thornton, you must do it."
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The young man was about to say good night to her at her gate after having stubbornly refused to execute a certain commission for her.
Chapter 9 of Madge Morton's Secret by Amy D. V. Chalmers holds 189 sentences, grouped into 38 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 189 sentences of Madge Morton's Secret, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Madge Morton's Secret by Amy D. V. Chalmers exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 189 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 Madge Morton's Secret by Amy D. V. Chalmers on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3645 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20737 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #20737, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 303 minutes of reading across 729 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Madge Morton's Secret section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Madge Morton's Secret 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 Madge Morton's Secret, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
