Chapter 14 of Motor Matt's Launch is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of Motor Matt's Launch is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
WAITING AND WORRYING. "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?" "From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory. "But that was some sort of a while ago. I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
Chapter 14 of Motor Matt's Launch is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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 hired hand who tends cattle and performs other duties on horseback
From this reading “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading “"From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory.”
the property of having little or no contrast; lacking highlights or gloss
From this reading “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading “I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."”
a small being, human in form, playful and having magical powers
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
From this reading “WAITING AND WORRYING.”
the act of harassing someone
From this reading “WAITING AND WORRYING.”
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 “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
In this reading “"But that was some sort of a while ago.”
In this reading “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
In this reading “"In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"”
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 "But that was some sort of a while ago.
in the past
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
(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 "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading WAITING AND WORRYING.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
a hired hand who tends cattle and performs other duties on horseback
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading "From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
the property of having little or no contrast; lacking highlights or gloss
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading I've been on the house boat for quite a spell."
a small being, human in form, playful and having magical powers
From this reading "From the _Sprite_, pard," grinned McGlory.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
From this reading WAITING AND WORRYING.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
in or at the place that
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
during the time that
From this reading "But that was some sort of a while ago.
the act of harassing someone
From this reading WAITING AND WORRYING.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "In the name of all that's good, Joe," cried Matt, as he and the cowboy shook hands, "where did you come from?"
Chapter 14 of Motor Matt's Launch by Stanley R. Matthews holds 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 14 holds 112 sentences of Motor Matt's Launch, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of Motor Matt's Launch by Stanley R. Matthews exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 14 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 Launch by Stanley R. Matthews on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2309 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50533 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50533, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 192 minutes of reading across 462 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Motor Matt's Launch section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Motor Matt's Launch 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 Launch, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
