Chapter 39 of One of Ours is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIX
Chapter 39 of One of Ours is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"And the Bavarian?" Claude asked David later. The story had become so complicated he could not follow it. "He justified her, and promptly. He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
Chapter 39 of One of Ours is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/43 · 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.
a native or an inhabitant of Bavaria
From this reading “"And the Bavarian?"”
difficult to analyze or understand
From this reading “The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.”
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading “Claude asked David later.”
having words so spaced that lines have straight even margins
From this reading “"He justified her, and promptly.”
a firearm that is held and fired with one hand
From this reading “He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.”
with little or no delay
From this reading “"He justified her, and promptly.”
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading “He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.”
plural of “temple” — place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
From this reading “He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And the Bavarian?"
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Claude asked David later.
a native or an inhabitant of Bavaria
From this reading "And the Bavarian?"
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Claude asked David later.
difficult to analyze or understand
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading Claude asked David later.
to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "He justified her, and promptly.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
having words so spaced that lines have straight even margins
From this reading "He justified her, and promptly.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Claude asked David later.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
a firearm that is held and fired with one hand
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
with little or no delay
From this reading "He justified her, and promptly.
Identical; not different.
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading The story had become so complicated he could not follow it.
plural of “temple” — place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "And the Bavarian?"
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading He took the same pistol and shot himself through the temples.
Chapter 39 of One of Ours by Willa Cather holds 216 sentences, grouped into 44 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 39 holds 216 sentences of One of Ours, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 39 of One of Ours by Willa Cather exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 216 sentences, grouped into 44 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 44 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 44 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 39 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 One of Ours by Willa Cather on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8134 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2369 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2369, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1627 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through One of Ours section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of One of Ours 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 One of Ours, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
