Chapter 8 of On the Firing Line is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of On the Firing Line is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She nodded. "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent. The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help. Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders. Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
Chapter 8 of On the Firing Line is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
third-person singular of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading “Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."”
tiresomely long; seemingly without end
From this reading “Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.”
(comparative of “few” used with count nouns) quantifier meaning a smaller number of
From this reading “Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."”
third-person singular of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading “The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.”
the first month of the year; begins 10 days after the winter solstice
From this reading “Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."”
plural of “patient” — a person who requires medical care
From this reading “Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."”
consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense
From this reading “Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.”
shaped or conditioned or disciplined by training; often used as a combining form
From this reading “Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.”
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 Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
(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 Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
third-person singular of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
permission to do something
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
tiresomely long; seemingly without end
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
(comparative of “few” used with count nouns) quantifier meaning a smaller number of
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
greater in size or importance or degree
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
third-person singular of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
the first month of the year; begins 10 days after the winter solstice
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
for more time
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading She nodded.
the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
plural of “order” — (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
plural of “patient” — a person who requires medical care
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She nodded.
consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
carry out
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
shaped or conditioned or disciplined by training; often used as a combining form
From this reading Cooee isn't trained at all; but she has endless tact and she knows how to take orders.
except if; if not
From this reading The need grows greater, every day; we can't hold out much longer, unless we can have more help.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We need her, and my aunt has almost given her consent.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading Unless January brings us fewer patients, I think she will come north for a month."
Chapter 8 of On the Firing Line by Anna Chapin Ray holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 8 holds 419 sentences of On the Firing Line, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of On the Firing Line by Anna Chapin Ray exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 8 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 On the Firing Line by Anna Chapin Ray on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4556 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3605 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3605, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 379 minutes of reading across 912 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through On the Firing Line section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of On the Firing Line 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 On the Firing Line, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
