Chapter 18 of Manhattan Transfer is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of Manhattan Transfer is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes. ANNUAL DANCE. Young men and girls going in. _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall. Outside it is raining.
Chapter 18 of Manhattan Transfer is here in full — 413 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.
make a resonant sound, like artillery
From this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
make a sound typical of metallic objects
From this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
dance a quick dance with leaping and kicking motions
From this reading “Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.”
any of several herbivorous leaping marsupials of Australia and New Guinea having large powerful hind legs and a long thick tail
From this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
a musical organization consisting of a group of instrumentalists including string players
From this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
post in a public place
From this reading “Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.”
falling in drops or as if falling like rain
From this reading “Outside it is raining.”
leaking out slowly
From this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
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 “Young men and girls going in.”
a door that swings on a double hinge; opens in either direction
In this reading “_Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.”
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 “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
completing its life cycle within a year
From this reading ANNUAL DANCE.
a formal organization of people or groups of people
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
make a resonant sound, like artillery
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading ANNUAL DANCE.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
five-toed pachyderm
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
the act of departing
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Outside it is raining.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Outside it is raining.
make a sound typical of metallic objects
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
dance a quick dance with leaping and kicking motions
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
any of several herbivorous leaping marsupials of Australia and New Guinea having large powerful hind legs and a long thick tail
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
the literary culture
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
United States prizefighter who was world heavyweight champion for 12 years (1914-1981)
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
the force of workers available
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
a musical organization consisting of a group of instrumentalists including string players
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading Outside it is raining.
post in a public place
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
falling in drops or as if falling like rain
From this reading Outside it is raining.
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
leaking out slowly
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
changing location by moving back and forth
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Louis Expresso Association, the red letters on the placard jig before Stan’s eyes.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading _Two by two the elephant And the kangaroo._ The boom and jangle of an orchestra seeping out through the swinging doors of the hall.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading Young men and girls going in.
Chapter 18 of Manhattan Transfer by John Dos Passos holds 413 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 18 holds 413 sentences of Manhattan Transfer, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of Manhattan Transfer by John Dos Passos exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 413 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 18 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 Manhattan Transfer by John Dos Passos on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Manhattan Transfer section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Manhattan Transfer 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 Manhattan Transfer, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
