Chapter 7 of Out for Business is here in full — 163 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Out for Business is here in full — 163 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BAFFLED. The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say. Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him. "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked. "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
Chapter 7 of Out for Business is here in full — 163 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
people who are frustrated and perplexed
From this reading “BAFFLED.”
to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle
From this reading “The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.”
restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken
From this reading “"What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.”
in a gradual manner
From this reading “Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.”
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading “"What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.”
a traveler riding in a vehicle (a boat or bus or car or plane or train etc) who is not operating it
From this reading “"Why didn't you select some other passenger?"”
United States parliamentary authority and author (in 1876) of Robert's Rules of Order (1837-1923)
From this reading “The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.”
of superior grade
From this reading “"Why didn't you select some other passenger?"”
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 “"Why didn't you select some other passenger?"”
In this reading “"What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.”
find unexpectedly
In this reading “The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.”
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.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
people who are frustrated and perplexed
From this reading BAFFLED.
to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
in a gradual manner
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
only a very short time before
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
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 The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
a traveler riding in a vehicle (a boat or bus or car or plane or train etc) who is not operating it
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
the state of being present; current existence
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading Gradually, his presence of mind returned to him.
United States parliamentary authority and author (in 1876) of Robert's Rules of Order (1837-1923)
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
express in words
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
of superior grade
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
happening unexpectedly
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
look attentively
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading The charge had come upon Robert so suddenly that he hardly knew what to say.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why didn't you select some other passenger?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "What made you fix upon me as the one likely to have the watch?" he asked.
Chapter 7 of Out for Business by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 163 sentences, grouped into 33 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 7 holds 163 sentences of Out for Business, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Out for Business by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 163 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 7 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 Out for Business by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4464 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #54737 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #54737, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 372 minutes of reading across 893 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Out for Business section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of Out for Business 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 Out for Business, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
