Chapter 20 of No Man's Island is here in full — 186 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of No Man's Island is here in full — 186 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone. "Light the lamp and let me look at you. I don’t recognise you. When was our last meeting?" "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
Chapter 20 of No Man's Island is here in full — 186 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
(behavioral attributes) the way a person behaves toward other people
From this reading “"About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.”
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading “"Light the lamp and let me look at you.”
a son of your brother or sister
From this reading “THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.”
the rate of moving (especially walking or running)
From this reading “THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.”
United States writer whose novels explored human alienation (1916-1990)
From this reading “THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.”
third-person singular of “quicken” — move faster
From this reading “THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.”
show approval or appreciation of
From this reading “I don’t recognise you.”
possessive form of “uncle” — the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
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 “"About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.”
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “"Light the lamp and let me look at you.”
In this reading “"About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.”
In this reading “When was our last meeting?"”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
in the past
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
make calm or still
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
(behavioral attributes) the way a person behaves toward other people
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I don’t recognise you.
destroyed or killed
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I don’t recognise you.
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
immediately past
From this reading When was our last meeting?"
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Light the lamp and let me look at you.
a formally arranged gathering
From this reading When was our last meeting?"
a form of address for a man
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
a son of your brother or sister
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading When was our last meeting?"
the rate of moving (especially walking or running)
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
United States writer whose novels explored human alienation (1916-1990)
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
third-person singular of “quicken” — move faster
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
show approval or appreciation of
From this reading I don’t recognise you.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
possessive form of “uncle” — the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading When was our last meeting?"
at the time that
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
a late time of life
From this reading "About ten years ago," replied Pratt, surprised at his uncle’s calm demeanour.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading THE PACE QUICKENS "So you are my nephew Percy," said Mr. Pratt when Warrender had gone.
Chapter 20 of No Man's Island by Herbert Strang holds 186 sentences, grouped into 38 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 20 holds 186 sentences of No Man's Island, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of No Man's Island by Herbert Strang exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 186 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 20 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 No Man's Island by Herbert Strang on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4469 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40555 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40555, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 372 minutes of reading across 894 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through No Man's Island section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of No Man's Island 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 No Man's Island, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
