Chapter 16 of Miss Billy's Decision is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of Miss Billy's Decision is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone. “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.” “Billy, are you very busy this morning?” “No, indeed--not if you want me.” “Well, I do, my dear.”
Chapter 16 of Miss Billy's Decision is here in full — 208 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/41 · 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 short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading “Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.”
eat an early morning meal
From this reading “Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.”
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading ““Billy, are you very busy this morning?””
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading “Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.”
of grammatical gender
From this reading ““Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.””
past form of “summon” — call in an official matter, such as to attend court
From this reading “Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.”
electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds
From this reading “Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.”
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading ““Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.””
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 Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
react verbally
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Billy, are you very busy this morning?”
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading “Billy, are you very busy this morning?”
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
dearly loved
From this reading “Well, I do, my dear.”
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “Well, I do, my dear.”
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Well, I do, my dear.”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
of grammatical gender
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Well, I do, my dear.”
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
past form of “summon” — call in an official matter, such as to attend court
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Billy, are you very busy this morning?”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
precisely as stated
From this reading “Billy, are you very busy this morning?”
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading “No, indeed--not if you want me.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Immediately after breakfast the next morning, Billy was summoned to the telephone.
(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 “Well, I do, my dear.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh, good morning, Uncle William,” she called, in answer to the masculine voice that replied to her “Hullo.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Billy, are you very busy this morning?”
Chapter 16 of Miss Billy's Decision by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter holds 208 sentences, grouped into 42 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 16 holds 208 sentences of Miss Billy's Decision, unabridged, divided into 42 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of Miss Billy's Decision by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 208 sentences, grouped into 42 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 42 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 42 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 16 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 Miss Billy's Decision by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5345 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #362 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #362, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 445 minutes of reading across 1069 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Miss Billy's Decision section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of Miss Billy's Decision 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 Miss Billy's Decision, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
