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Neighborhood Stories
Neighborhood Stories

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Neighborhood Stories
Context Illustration Reading 1/86 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Oh, God.
It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.
It is our invisible church from the old time.
Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?
It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Neighborhood Stories

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/86 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Oh, God.
/oʊ ɡɑːd/
Line 2
It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.
Line 3
It is our invisible church from the old time.
/ɪt ɪz ˈaʊər ˌɪnˈvɪzəbəl tʃɜːrtʃ frʌm ðə oʊld taɪm/
Line 4
Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?
Line 5
It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.
/ɪt ɪz jɔːr tʃɜːrtʃ ənd ðə tʃɜːrtʃ ʌv ɔːl ðoʊz huː traɪ tuː noʊ juː/

Learner Dictionary

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.

belonged verb US /bɪˈlɔːŋd/

past form of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of

From this reading “Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?”

clung verb US /klʌŋ/

inflected form of “cling” — come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation

From this reading “Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?”

crept verb US /krept/

inflected form of “creep” — move slowly; in the case of people or animals with the body near the ground

From this reading “Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?”

invisible adjective US /ˌɪnˈvɪzəbəl/

impossible or nearly impossible to see; imperceptible by the eye

From this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

longing noun US /ˈlɔːŋɪŋ/

prolonged unfulfilled desire or need

From this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

relation noun US /riˈleɪʃən/

an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together

From this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

striving noun US /ˈstraɪvɪŋ/

an effortful attempt to attain a goal

From this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

withdraw verb US /wɪðˈdrɔː/

pull back or move away or backward

From this reading “Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

crept into verb + particle counted as “creep into”

In this reading “Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?”

draw together verb + particle

bring together in a common cause or emotion

In this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

search of verb + particle

In this reading “It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.”

All words in this reading · 58

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.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

belongedverbUS /bɪˈlɔːŋd/

past form of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

churchnounUS /tʃɜːrtʃ/

one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

clungverbUS /klʌŋ/

inflected form of “cling” — come or be in close contact with; stick or hold together and resist separation

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

creptverbUS /krept/

inflected form of “creep” — move slowly; in the case of people or animals with the body near the ground

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

drawverbUS /drɔː/

cause to move by pulling

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

falseadjectiveUS /fɔːls/

not in accordance with the fact or reality or actuality

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

findverbUS /faɪnd/

come upon, as if by accident; meet with

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

GodnounUS /ɡɑːd/

the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions

From this reading “Oh, God.

grownadjectiveUS /ɡroʊn/

(of animals) fully developed

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

hasauxiliary verbUS /hæz/

the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

invisibleadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈvɪzəbəl/

impossible or nearly impossible to see; imperceptible by the eye

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

It's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

knowverbUS /noʊ/

be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

livingnounUS /ˈlɪvɪŋ/

the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

longingnounUS /ˈlɔːŋɪŋ/

prolonged unfulfilled desire or need

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

mennounUS /men/

the force of workers available

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

muchadverbUS /mʌtʃ/

to a great degree or extent

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

OhnounUS /oʊ/

a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region

From this reading “Oh, God.

oldadjectiveUS /oʊld/

(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

onesnounUS /wʌnz/

plural of “one” — the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

ourdeterminerUS /ˈaʊər/

belonging to the speaker and others

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

placenounUS /pleɪs/

a point located with respect to surface features of some region

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

readverbUS /red/

interpret something that is written or printed

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

relationnounUS /riˈleɪʃən/

an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

searchverbUS /sɜːrtʃ/

try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

strivingnounUS /ˈstraɪvɪŋ/

an effortful attempt to attain a goal

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

thenadverbUS /ðen/

subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

thingsnounUS /θɪŋz/

any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.

timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading It is our invisible church from the old time.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

togetheradverbUS /təˈɡeðər/

in contact with each other or in proximity

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

tryverbUS /traɪ/

make an effort or attempt

From this reading It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.

visibleadjectiveUS /ˈvɪzəbəl/

capable of being seen; or open to easy view

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

wepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

WhynounUS /waɪ/

the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

withdrawverbUS /wɪðˈdrɔː/

pull back or move away or backward

From this reading Why then--when men read things into the visible church that never belonged there, when there has crept into and clung there much that is false, why is it that we who know this must be the ones to withdraw?

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading It’s the invisible church of the living God--it’s the place that has grown out of the relation of men to you, out of the striving of men to find you, and out of their longing to draw together in search of you.

yourdeterminerUS /jɔːr/

belonging to the person or people being spoken to

From this reading It is your church and the church of all those who try to know you.

Chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories by Zona Gale holds 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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.

What does chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories contain?

Chapter 4 holds 430 sentences of Neighborhood Stories, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories by Zona Gale exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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.

How do I study chapter 4 of Neighborhood Stories?

Work through the 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 86 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.

Can chapter 4 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 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.

Questions about reading Neighborhood Stories

Common questions about reading Neighborhood Stories by Zona Gale on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Neighborhood Stories?

Yes. All 4241 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52089 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Neighborhood Stories is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #52089, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Neighborhood Stories take to read?

About 353 minutes of reading across 849 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Neighborhood Stories section by section

How to work through Neighborhood Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 10 chapters of Neighborhood Stories to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Neighborhood Stories

Words and structures a reader meets early in Neighborhood Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Macmillan
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Neighborhood Stories; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Canada
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Neighborhood Stories; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Author
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Neighborhood Stories; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Friendship
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Neighborhood Stories; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.