Chapter 10 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MERRIMAC. EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family. Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger. Each time they told of some new and surprising event. The insurgents were braver than ever before.
Chapter 10 of Our Little Cuban Cousin is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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.
comparative of “brave” — possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading “The insurgents were braver than ever before.”
Portuguese explorer who in 1488 was the first European to get round the Cape of Good Hope (thus establishing a sea route from the Atlantic to Asia) (1450-1500)
From this reading “EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.”
something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading “Each time they told of some new and surprising event.”
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading “EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.”
plural of “insurgent” — a person who takes part in an armed rebellion against the constituted authority (especially in the hope of improving conditions)
From this reading “The insurgents were braver than ever before.”
an ironclad vessel built by the Confederate forces in the hope of breaking the blockade imposed by the North
From this reading “THE MERRIMAC.”
a person who carries a message
From this reading “Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.”
causing surprise or wonder or amazement
From this reading “Each time they told of some new and surprising event.”
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 “Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.”
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 Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading The insurgents were braver than ever before.
comparative of “brave” — possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading The insurgents were braver than ever before.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
Portuguese explorer who in 1488 was the first European to get round the Cape of Good Hope (thus establishing a sea route from the Atlantic to Asia) (1450-1500)
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
at any time
From this reading The insurgents were braver than ever before.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
a social unit living together
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
plural of “insurgent” — a person who takes part in an armed rebellion against the constituted authority (especially in the hope of improving conditions)
From this reading The insurgents were braver than ever before.
the literary culture
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
an ironclad vessel built by the Confederate forces in the hope of breaking the blockade imposed by the North
From this reading THE MERRIMAC.
a person who carries a message
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
many times at short intervals
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
causing surprise or wonder or amazement
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The insurgents were braver than ever before.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MERRIMAC.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading Each time they told of some new and surprising event.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading EVERY day now was full of excitement for the Diaz family.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Letters were often brought to the house by some secret messenger.
Chapter 10 of Our Little Cuban Cousin by Mary Hazelton Blanchard Wade holds 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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 10 holds 90 sentences of Our Little Cuban Cousin, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of Our Little Cuban Cousin by Mary Hazelton Blanchard Wade exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 10 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.
