Chapter 1 of Man in a Quandary is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Man in a Quandary is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
By L. J. STECHER, JR. If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this? I have a problem. In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born. And so was I--normal, I mean.
Chapter 1 of Man in a Quandary is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
very opposed in nature or character or purpose
From this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
conforming with or constituting a norm or standard or level or type or social norm; not abnormal
From this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
a state of difficulty that needs to be resolved
From this reading “I have a problem.”
in the right manner; correctly; suitably
From this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
plural of “rumor” — gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
From this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
a particular situation
From this reading “If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?”
act of expanding by lengthening or widening
From this reading “If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?”
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 “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
In this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
simultaneously
In this reading “In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.”
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 If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
brought into existence
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading By L. J. STECHER, JR.
very opposed in nature or character or purpose
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have a problem.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I have a problem.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
From this reading By L. J. STECHER, JR.
a son who has the same first name as his father
From this reading By L. J. STECHER, JR.
a metric unit of capacity, formerly defined as the volume of one kilogram of pure water under standard conditions; now equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters (or approximately 1.75 pints)
From this reading By L. J. STECHER, JR.
joined in matrimony
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading And so was I--normal, I mean.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
conforming with or constituting a norm or standard or level or type or social norm; not abnormal
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
a state of difficulty that needs to be resolved
From this reading I have a problem.
in the right manner; correctly; suitably
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
plural of “rumor” — gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
a particular situation
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading And so was I--normal, I mean.
feeling a need to see others suffer
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading By L. J. STECHER, JR.
act of expanding by lengthening or widening
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading In spite of rumors to the contrary, my parents were properly married, and were perfectly normal people at the time I was born.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading If you were in my--well, shoes, if you don't mind stretching a point--what would you do about this?
Chapter 1 of Man in a Quandary by L. J., Jr. Stecher holds 198 sentences, grouped into 40 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 1 holds 198 sentences of Man in a Quandary, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Man in a Quandary by L. J., Jr. Stecher exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 198 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 1 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 Man in a Quandary by L. J., Jr. Stecher on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 198 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51421 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51421, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 16 minutes of reading across 40 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Man in a Quandary section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of Man in a Quandary 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 Man in a Quandary, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
