Chapter 5 of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!” Believe it? Why how could they? They knew the road perfectly. We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
Chapter 5 of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
having the attention diverted especially because of anxiety
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
every person
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
waterfall in Canada is the Horseshoe Falls; in the United States it is the American Falls
From this reading “We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.”
being directly across from each other; facing
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
plural of “servant” — a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
in a vehement outcry
From this reading “Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!””
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.
later than; following
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading Believe it?
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Why how could they?
having the attention diverted especially because of anxiety
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
every person
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Why how could they?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Believe it?
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading They knew the road perfectly.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
waterfall in Canada is the Horseshoe Falls; in the United States it is the American Falls
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
being directly across from each other; facing
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
above and across; more than
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading They knew the road perfectly.
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
an open way (generally public) for travel or transportation
From this reading They knew the road perfectly.
free from danger or the risk of harm
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
plural of “servant” — a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
in a vehement outcry
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
spreading out in different directions or distributed irregularly
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Why how could they?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
(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 We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
which person or people
From this reading We might as well have said it to people who had seen their friends go over Niagara.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why how could they?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Ten minutes later Theodore and I arrived opposite the house, with the servants straggling after us, and shouted to the distracted group on the porch, “Everybody safe!”
Chapter 5 of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) by Mark Twain holds 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 5 holds 169 sentences of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885), unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) by Mark Twain exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 5 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 Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) by Mark Twain on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3348 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3195 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3195, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 279 minutes of reading across 670 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885) 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 Mark Twain's Letters — Volume 3 (1876-1885), each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
