Chapter 29 of On the red staircase is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of On the red staircase is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A DESPERATE DEFENSE. I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men. Pierrot addressed me at once in French. “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger. He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
Chapter 29 of On the red staircase is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/11 · 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.
(of mail) marked with a destination
From this reading “Pierrot addressed me at once in French.”
third-person singular of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading “He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.”
(military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies
From this reading “A DESPERATE DEFENSE.”
carefully thought out in advance
From this reading ““I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.”
arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
From this reading “A DESPERATE DEFENSE.”
a social unit living together
From this reading “He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.”
move something or somebody to a lower position
From this reading “I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.”
plural of “soldier” — an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading “He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.”
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 “I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.”
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
In this reading “Pierrot addressed me at once in French.”
In this reading “I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.”
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 A DESPERATE DEFENSE.
(of mail) marked with a destination
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
third-person singular of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
(military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies
From this reading A DESPERATE DEFENSE.
carefully thought out in advance
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
From this reading A DESPERATE DEFENSE.
a boy or man
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
a social unit living together
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
a chronic inflammatory collagen disease affecting connective tissue (skin or joints)
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
move something or somebody to a lower position
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
the force of workers available
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
on one occasion
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
a male character in French pantomime; usually dressed in white with a whitened face
From this reading Pierrot addressed me at once in French.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
plural of “soldier” — an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He belongs to the household of the czarevna, and knows a number of the soldiers.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “I have been talking with this fellow, M. le Vicomte,” he said, in his deliberate way, “and I find that we may be in some danger.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I STOOD in the lower hall with the two men.
Chapter 29 of On the red staircase by Mary Imlay Taylor holds 59 sentences, grouped into 12 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 29 holds 59 sentences of On the red staircase, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 of On the red staircase by Mary Imlay Taylor exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 59 sentences, grouped into 12 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 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 12 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 29 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.
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