Chapter 8 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 84 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 84 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
STARTLING NEWS. IT was a pleasant evening in February. The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger. Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave. Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
Chapter 8 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 84 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
inflected form of “beg” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading “Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.”
a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea
From this reading “Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.”
a journey taken for pleasure
From this reading “Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.”
the month following January and preceding March
From this reading “IT was a pleasant evening in February.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading “The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.”
a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading “Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.”
so remarkably different or sudden as to cause momentary shock or alarm
From this reading “STARTLING NEWS.”
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading “The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.”
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 “STARTLING NEWS.”
In this reading “Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.”
In this reading “IT was a pleasant evening in February.”
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 was a pleasant evening in February.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
inflected form of “beg” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
a journey taken for pleasure
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
the month following January and preceding March
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
information about recent and important events
From this reading STARTLING NEWS.
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
so remarkably different or sudden as to cause momentary shock or alarm
From this reading STARTLING NEWS.
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
carry out
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The children felt gay and happy, for their father was getting so much stronger.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
precisely as stated
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading IT was a pleasant evening in February.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Why, this very day he had walked with them a mile in an excursion to a cave.
extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers
From this reading Miguel had told them such wonderful things about it, they begged their father to take them there.
Chapter 8 of Our Little Cuban Cousin by Mary Hazelton Blanchard Wade holds 84 sentences, grouped into 17 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 84 sentences of Our Little Cuban Cousin, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Our Little Cuban Cousin by Mary Hazelton Blanchard Wade exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 84 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 Our Little Cuban Cousin by Mary Hazelton Blanchard Wade on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1285 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43636 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43636, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 107 minutes of reading across 257 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Our Little Cuban Cousin section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Our Little Cuban Cousin 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 Our Little Cuban Cousin, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
