Chapter 9 of Mr. Jacobs is here in full — 11 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Mr. Jacobs is here in full — 11 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
An old yogi stood near an older well. He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up. Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass. "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?" I inquired.
Chapter 9 of Mr. Jacobs is here in full — 11 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/2 · 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.
at or to or toward the back or rear
From this reading “Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.”
a roughly cylindrical vessel that is open at the top
From this reading “He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.”
with the head foremost
From this reading “Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.”
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “I inquired.”
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading “An old yogi stood near an older well.”
a person who is owned by someone
From this reading “He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.”
dependable
From this reading “Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.”
United States baseball player (born 1925)
From this reading “An old yogi stood near an older well.”
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 “Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.”
In this reading “An old yogi stood near an older well.”
appear or become visible; make a showing
In this reading “Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.”
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 He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
any thing at all
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
at or to or toward the back or rear
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
the lower side of anything
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
a roughly cylindrical vessel that is open at the top
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
cause to move by pulling
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
at any time
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
shoot down, of birds
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
with the head foremost
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I inquired.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading I inquired.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
a person who is owned by someone
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
dependable
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He put a stone in the bucket, and the slave could not draw it up.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Suddenly the bottom came out, and the stout water-carrier fell headlong backwards on the grass.
(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 An old yogi stood near an older well.
United States baseball player (born 1925)
From this reading An old yogi stood near an older well.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Did you ever see anything of that kind before, Miss Eastinhoe?"
Chapter 9 of Mr. Jacobs by Arlo Bates holds 11 sentences, grouped into 3 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 9 holds 11 sentences of Mr. Jacobs, unabridged, divided into 3 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Mr. Jacobs by Arlo Bates exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 11 sentences, grouped into 3 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 3 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 3 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 9 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 Mr. Jacobs by Arlo Bates on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 214 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #41125 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #41125, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 17 minutes of reading across 43 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mr. Jacobs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Mr. Jacobs 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 Mr. Jacobs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
