Chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Speeches 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 XI
Chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Speeches is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I have found mine a good many times. Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected. I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor. I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room. I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
Chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Speeches 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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.”
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading “I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.”
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading “I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.”
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading “Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.”
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading “I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.”
make or become more narrow or restricted
From this reading “I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.”
pit viper with horny segments at the end of the tail that rattle when shaken
From this reading “I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.”
not expected or anticipated
From this reading “Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.”
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 I have found mine a good many times.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
set up or found
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
make or become more narrow or restricted
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
many times at short intervals
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
pit viper with horny segments at the end of the tail that rattle when shaken
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading I have found mine a good many times.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
not expected or anticipated
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Sometimes this was expected—often it was unexpected.
which person or people
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattlesnake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
Chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Speeches 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 11 holds 169 sentences of Mark Twain's Speeches, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Speeches 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 11 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 Speeches by Mark Twain on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4769 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3188 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3188, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 397 minutes of reading across 954 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mark Twain's Speeches section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Mark Twain's Speeches 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 Speeches, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
