Chapter 1 of Men into space is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Men into space is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
There was no sensation of weight. Nothing weighed anything. Nothing could be considered light or heavy. The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary. They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
Chapter 1 of Men into space is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor
From this reading “The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.”
not based on fact; existing only in the imagination
From this reading “The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.”
the common people generally
From this reading “They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.”
an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading “There was no sensation of weight.”
have a certain weight
From this reading “They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.”
past form of “weigh” — have a certain weight
From this reading “Nothing weighed anything.”
indicating the absence of any or all units under consideration
From this reading “They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.”
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.
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 The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
any thing at all
From this reading Nothing weighed anything.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
the two together, not just one
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
carefully weighed
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
the quality of being unlike or dissimilar
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
unlike in nature or quality or form or degree
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
not based on fact; existing only in the imagination
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
used when the thing doing the action is also its object
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
the common people generally
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading Nothing weighed anything.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Nothing could be considered light or heavy.
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
Identical; not different.
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
transport commercially
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The difference in weight between a copper penny and the ship itself was imaginary.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
have a certain weight
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
past form of “weigh” — have a certain weight
From this reading Nothing weighed anything.
the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity
From this reading There was no sensation of weight.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
indicating the absence of any or all units under consideration
From this reading They had different masses, but both would weigh the same--zero.
Chapter 1 of Men into space by Murray Leinster holds 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 431 sentences of Men into space, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Men into space by Murray Leinster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Men into space, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
