Chapter 1 of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!” Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him. He had been seated in a corner of the park. It was early evening, but quite dark. He sprang to his feet.
Chapter 1 of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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.
largest city in Illinois; a bustling Great Lakes port that extends 26 miles along the southwestern shoreline of Lake Michigan
From this reading “The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!””
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading “Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.”
United States filmmaker whose works explore the richness of black culture in America (born in 1957)
From this reading “The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!””
accept an excuse for
From this reading “The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!””
a large area of land preserved in its natural state as public property
From this reading “He had been seated in a corner of the park.”
a person, without saying who
From this reading “Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.”
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading “He sprang to his feet.”
United States classical archaeologist (born in Canada) noted for leading the excavation of the Athenian agora (1906-2000)
From this reading “Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.”
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 “The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!””
In this reading “It was early evening, but quite dark.”
In this reading “He had been seated in a corner of the park.”
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 had been seated in a corner of the park.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
largest city in Illinois; a bustling Great Lakes port that extends 26 miles along the southwestern shoreline of Lake Michigan
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading He sprang to his feet.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He sprang to his feet.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
United States filmmaker whose works explore the richness of black culture in America (born in 1957)
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
accept an excuse for
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
a large area of land preserved in its natural state as public property
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
(of persons) having the torso erect and legs bent with the body supported on the buttocks
From this reading He had been seated in a corner of the park.
a person, without saying who
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading He sprang to his feet.
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
United States classical archaeologist (born in Canada) noted for leading the excavation of the Athenian agora (1906-2000)
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He sprang to his feet.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was early evening, but quite dark.
the words that are spoken
From this reading Johnny Thompson started at the sound of these words spoken by someone close behind him.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The Reilly & Lee Co. Chicago “Pardon, my young friend!”
Chapter 1 of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys by Roy J. (Roy Judson) Snell holds 222 sentences, grouped into 45 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 1 holds 222 sentences of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys by Roy J. (Roy Judson) Snell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 222 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 1 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 Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys by Roy J. (Roy Judson) Snell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4298 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43904 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43904, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 358 minutes of reading across 860 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys 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 Mystery Wings: A Mystery Story for Boys, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
