Chapter 12 of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail is here in full — 133 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail is here in full — 133 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR. Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel. It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances. He had discretion as well as bravery. Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
Chapter 12 of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail is here in full — 133 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
past form of “bargain” — negotiate the terms of an exchange
From this reading “MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.”
in addition to; as well as
From this reading “Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.”
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading “He had discretion as well as bravery.”
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading “It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.”
a stairway or ladder that leads from one deck to another on a ship
From this reading “Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.”
freedom to act or judge on one's own
From this reading “He had discretion as well as bravery.”
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading “Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.”
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading “Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.”
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 Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He had discretion as well as bravery.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
past form of “bargain” — negotiate the terms of an exchange
From this reading MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.
in addition to; as well as
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading He had discretion as well as bravery.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.
a stairway or ladder that leads from one deck to another on a ship
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
freedom to act or judge on one's own
From this reading He had discretion as well as bravery.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had discretion as well as bravery.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Besides, Clancy was facing the companionway and Katz had his back to it.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.
and nothing more
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
luggage consisting of a small case with a flat bottom and (usually) a shoulder strap
From this reading Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.
a special situation
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was the only thing for him to do, under the circumstances.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading He had discretion as well as bravery.
an affirmative
From this reading Yes, Clancy dropped the satchel.
Chapter 12 of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail by Burt L. Standish holds 133 sentences, grouped into 27 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 12 holds 133 sentences of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Owen Clancy's Happy Trail by Burt L. Standish exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 133 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 12 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 Owen Clancy's Happy Trail by Burt L. Standish on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2141 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24102 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24102, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 178 minutes of reading across 429 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Owen Clancy's Happy Trail section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Owen Clancy's Happy 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 Owen Clancy's Happy Trail, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
