Chapter 3 of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories is here in full — 529 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories is here in full — 529 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away. No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat. He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful. Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say: "'Better times coming!
Chapter 3 of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories is here in full — 529 sentences across 106 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/105 · 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.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading “He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.”
an eccentric or undignified rustic
From this reading “"But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.”
show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading “"But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.”
a loud low dull continuous noise
From this reading “Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:”
clean or organized
From this reading “He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.”
plural of “neighbor” — a person who lives (or is located) near another
From this reading “Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:”
caught or fixed
From this reading “No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.”
at any time that; every time that
From this reading “Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:”
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.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading "'Better times coming!
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading "'Better times coming!
an eccentric or undignified rustic
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
take in solid food
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
at any time
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
a loud low dull continuous noise
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
and nothing more
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
a form of address for a man
From this reading "But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away.
clean or organized
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
plural of “neighbor” — a person who lives (or is located) near another
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
not any; not one
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
express in words
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
term of address for a man
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
caught or fixed
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading "'Better times coming!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading No, Sir, Mr. Coon just stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough to eat.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful.
at any time that; every time that
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Whenever he met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
Chapter 3 of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories by Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess holds 529 sentences, grouped into 106 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 3 holds 529 sentences of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories, unabridged, divided into 106 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories by Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 529 sentences, grouped into 106 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 106 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 106 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 3 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 Mother West Wind "Why" Stories by Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1552 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14958 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14958, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 129 minutes of reading across 311 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mother West Wind "Why" Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of Mother West Wind "Why" Stories 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 Mother West Wind "Why" Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
