Chapter 21 of Marching Sands is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of Marching Sands is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross. Before it burned a candle. Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle. "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly. "But we have kept the talisman.
Chapter 21 of Marching Sands is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/52 · 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.
special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.
From this reading “MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.”
a semiprecious gemstone that takes a high polish; is usually green but sometimes whitish; consists of jadeite or nephrite
From this reading “MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.”
past form of “limp” — walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading “Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.”
relating to or belonging to the Middle Ages
From this reading “MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.”
An object, such as an inscribed ring or stone, thought to have magic powers and to bring good luck.
From this reading “"But we have kept the talisman.”
Mongolian ruler of Samarkand who led his nomadic hordes to conquer an area from Turkey to Mongolia (1336-1405)
From this reading “Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.”
made neat and tidy by trimming
From this reading “Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.”
any piece of cord that conveys liquid by capillary action
From this reading “Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.”
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 “Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.”
In this reading “MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.”
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 MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Before it burned a candle.
treated by heating to a high temperature but below the melting or fusing point
From this reading Before it burned a candle.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But we have kept the talisman.
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading Before it burned a candle.
travel across or pass over
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
plural of “father” — a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
a neutral achromatic color midway between white and black
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
the Hellenic branch of the Indo-European family of languages
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "But we have kept the talisman.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Before it burned a candle.
a semiprecious gemstone that takes a high polish; is usually green but sometimes whitish; consists of jadeite or nephrite
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading "But we have kept the talisman.
past form of “limp” — walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
plural of “make” — a recognizable kind
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
the mother of Jesus; Christians refer to her as the Virgin Mary; she is especially honored by Roman Catholics
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
relating to or belonging to the Middle Ages
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
To recall to mind.
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
express the need or desire for
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
in an unfortunate way
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
any spatial attributes (especially as defined by outline)
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
without speaking
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
An object, such as an inscribed ring or stone, thought to have magic powers and to bring good luck.
From this reading "But we have kept the talisman.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
Mongolian ruler of Samarkand who led his nomadic hordes to conquer an area from Turkey to Mongolia (1336-1405)
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
made neat and tidy by trimming
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading MARY MAKES A REQUEST The cross was jade, in the shape of the medieval emblem--the Greek cross.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
during the time that
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
any piece of cord that conveys liquid by capillary action
From this reading Gray stared at it silently while Timur limped forward and trimmed the wick of the candle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "We do not remember the faith of our fathers," the old Wusun said sadly.
Chapter 21 of Marching Sands by Harold Lamb holds 263 sentences, grouped into 53 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 21 holds 263 sentences of Marching Sands, unabridged, divided into 53 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of Marching Sands by Harold Lamb exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 263 sentences, grouped into 53 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 53 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 53 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 21 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 Marching Sands by Harold Lamb 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 Marching Sands section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Marching Sands 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 Marching Sands, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
