Chapter 16 of Openings in the Old Trail is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of Openings in the Old Trail is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion. “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully. “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted? It's a young b'ar!” Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
Chapter 16 of Openings in the Old Trail is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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 friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading “Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.”
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading ““What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?”
plural of “footprint” — a mark of a foot or shoe on a surface
From this reading “Johnny knew the footprints were his own.”
in a hurried or hasty manner
From this reading “Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.”
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading “Johnny knew the footprints were his own.”
of or relating to two people who are married to each other
From this reading “Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.”
the Romance language spoken in most of Spain and the countries colonized by Spain
From this reading “Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.”
plural of “track” — a line or route along which something travels or moves
From this reading ““Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.”
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 It's a young b'ar!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's a young b'ar!”
without shoes
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
plural of “footprint” — a mark of a foot or shoe on a surface
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
in a hurried or hasty manner
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's a young b'ar!”
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
of or relating to two people who are married to each other
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
without respect; in a disdainful manner
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
the Romance language spoken in most of Spain and the countries colonized by Spain
From this reading Spanish Pete hurriedly joined his companion.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
plural of “track” — a line or route along which something travels or moves
From this reading “Foot tracks be ----!” he said scornfully.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Johnny knew the footprints were his own.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “What fool would be crawlin' round here barefooted?
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading It's a young b'ar!”
Chapter 16 of Openings in the Old Trail by Bret Harte holds 177 sentences, grouped into 36 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 16 holds 177 sentences of Openings in the Old Trail, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of Openings in the Old Trail by Bret Harte exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 177 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 16 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 Openings in the Old Trail by Bret Harte on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3277 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2535 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2535, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 273 minutes of reading across 656 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Openings in the Old Trail section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of Openings in the Old Trail 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 Openings in the Old Trail, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
