Chapter 3 of Motor Matt's Hard Luck is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Motor Matt's Hard Luck is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A TRAP. "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph. "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water? I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them." Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
Chapter 3 of Motor Matt's Hard Luck is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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 part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading “Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.”
travel on water propelled by wind or by other means
From this reading “"Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?”
a daily or weekly publication on folded sheets; contains news and articles and advertisements
From this reading “"Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.”
one of several distinct subdivisions of a text intended to separate ideas; the beginning is usually marked by a new indented line
From this reading “"Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.”
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading “Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.”
fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading “"Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.”
(used of eyes) open and fixed as if in fear or wonder
From this reading “"Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.”
a device in which something (usually an animal) can be caught and penned
From this reading “A TRAP.”
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.
In this reading “"Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.”
throw back with a quick, light motion
In this reading “Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.”
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 A TRAP.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
someone who is a detective
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
travel on water propelled by wind or by other means
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
a daily or weekly publication on folded sheets; contains news and articles and advertisements
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
one of several distinct subdivisions of a text intended to separate ideas; the beginning is usually marked by a new indented line
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
(used of eyes) open and fixed as if in fear or wonder
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
an event that accomplishes its intended purpose
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Well, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading I've heard of such things, but I didn't know they'd made a success of them."
inflected form of “throw” — propel through the air
From this reading Carl threw back his shoulders and puffed out his chest.
a device in which something (usually an animal) can be caught and penned
From this reading A TRAP.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading "Have they really got so they can navigate the air like they do the water?
(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, sink me!" muttered Dick Ferral, staring at the newspaper paragraph.
Chapter 3 of Motor Matt's Hard Luck by Stanley R. Matthews holds 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 116 sentences of Motor Matt's Hard Luck, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Motor Matt's Hard Luck by Stanley R. Matthews exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 Motor Matt's Hard Luck by Stanley R. Matthews on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2297 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #47975 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #47975, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 191 minutes of reading across 460 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Motor Matt's Hard Luck section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Motor Matt's Hard Luck 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 Motor Matt's Hard Luck, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
