Chapter 6 of Modern Americans is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of Modern Americans is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City. We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather. Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us. They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers. We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
Chapter 6 of Modern Americans is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
the lowermost portion of a structure partly or wholly below ground level; often used for storage
From this reading “We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."”
(of weather) wet by periods of rain
From this reading “It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.”
plural of “shop” — a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
From this reading “We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.”
plural of “store” — a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
From this reading “We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.”
(especially of weather) affected or characterized by storms or commotion
From this reading “It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.”
an electric railway operating below the surface of the ground (usually in a city)
From this reading “We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."”
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading “We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.”
covered or soaked with a liquid such as water
From this reading “We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."”
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 (future) time of financial need
In this reading “It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.”
weather unsuitable for outdoor activities
In this reading “We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.”
In this reading “We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."”
In this reading “We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.”
live in the house where one works
In this reading “Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.”
In this reading “Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.”
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 It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
(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 We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the lowermost portion of a structure partly or wholly below ground level; often used for storage
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
and nothing more
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
past form of “live” — be an inhabitant of or reside in
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
(of weather) wet by periods of rain
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
plural of “shop” — a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
plural of “store” — a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
(especially of weather) affected or characterized by storms or commotion
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
an electric railway operating below the surface of the ground (usually in a city)
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
carry out
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They said: "This is just the kind of a day to go to Wanamakers.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading We wanted to visit some of the great stores and shops, but were afraid of the bad weather.
covered or soaked with a liquid such as water
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
which person or people
From this reading Our friends who lived in the city laughed at us.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading We will take the subway to the basement door and never be in the wet at all."
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading It was a stormy, rainy day in New York City.
Chapter 6 of Modern Americans by Chester Milton Sanford holds 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 6 holds 410 sentences of Modern Americans, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of Modern Americans by Chester Milton Sanford exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 6 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 Modern Americans by Chester Milton Sanford on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2471 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30287 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30287, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 205 minutes of reading across 495 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Modern Americans section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Modern Americans 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 Modern Americans, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
