Chapter 5 of Old Crow is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Old Crow is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
At four o'clock he woke. He had not for a moment last night expected this. Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness. They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west. He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
Chapter 5 of Old Crow is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
past form of “hover” — be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action
From this reading “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
a person who is of equal standing with another in a group
From this reading “He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.”
plural of “power” — possession of controlling influence
From this reading “Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.”
the first light of day
From this reading “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
the time in the evening at which the sun begins to fall below the horizon
From this reading “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
a date; usually with a member of the opposite sex
From this reading “Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.”
inflected form of “wake” — be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading “At four o'clock he woke.”
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 “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
In this reading “He had not for a moment last night expected this.”
temporarily
In this reading “He had not for a moment last night expected this.”
In this reading “They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.”
In this reading “Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.”
In this reading “At four o'clock he woke.”
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 not for a moment last night expected this.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At four o'clock he woke.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
the cardinal compass point that is at 90 degrees
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading At four o'clock he woke.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading At four o'clock he woke.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
past form of “hover” — be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
immediately past
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
a particular point in time
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
according to the clock
From this reading At four o'clock he woke.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
above and across; more than
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
a person who is of equal standing with another in a group
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
plural of “power” — possession of controlling influence
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
the first light of day
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
the time in the evening at which the sun begins to fall below the horizon
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading He had not for a moment last night expected this.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
a date; usually with a member of the opposite sex
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He never had the courage to peer up at them and see how far the wings really did reach.
the countries of (originally) Europe and (now including) North America and South America
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
a means of flight or ascent
From this reading They hovered over him then with dull grey wings extended, from sunrise to sunset, from east to west.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Four o'clock had been for months the hour of his tryst with the powers of darkness.
inflected form of “wake” — be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading At four o'clock he woke.
Chapter 5 of Old Crow by Alice Brown holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 5 holds 403 sentences of Old Crow, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Old Crow by Alice Brown exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 5 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 Old Crow by Alice Brown on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11881 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31372 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31372, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2377 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Old Crow section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Old Crow 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 Old Crow, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
