Chapter 12 of Men, Women and Guns is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Men, Women and Guns is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?" The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair. Tea was over, and they were alone. "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely. "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
Chapter 12 of Men, Women and Guns is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
placed in a grave
From this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
shining unsteadily
From this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading “"On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.”
provided with artificial light
From this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
the hard durable wood of any oak; used especially for furniture and flooring
From this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
the act of playing a musical instrument
From this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
a beverage made by steeping tea leaves in water
From this reading “Tea was over, and they were alone.”
the third day of the week; the second working day
From this reading “"On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.”
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.
a comfortable upholstered armchair
In this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “"But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"”
In this reading “"On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.”
In this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
In this reading “The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.”
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.
Having no one else present.
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
a committee having supervisory powers
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
placed in a grave
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
dearly loved
From this reading "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
posing no difficulty; requiring little effort
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
start firing a weapon
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
be agreeable or acceptable to
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
shining unsteadily
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
a young female
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
provided with artificial light
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
the hard durable wood of any oak; used especially for furniture and flooring
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
above and across; more than
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
the act of playing a musical instrument
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
a beverage made by steeping tea leaves in water
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
the third day of the week; the second working day
From this reading "On Tuesday, dear," he answered gravely.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The flickering light of the fire lit up the old oak hall, playing on the face of the girl buried in an easy chair.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Tea was over, and they were alone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
but in spite of that
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But you aren't fit, old man; you don't think you're fit yet, do you?"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading THE WOMAN AND THE MAN "When's your board, Jim?"
Chapter 12 of Men, Women and Guns by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile holds 82 sentences, grouped into 17 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 12 holds 82 sentences of Men, Women and Guns, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Men, Women and Guns by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 82 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 12 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 Men, Women and Guns by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3999 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36211 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36211, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 333 minutes of reading across 800 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Men, Women and Guns section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Men, Women and Guns 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 Men, Women and Guns, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
