Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI

Chapter IX

Chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI is here in full — 78 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Walter [Compiler] Hamilton • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

THE SECOND PHANTOM.

One!

The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter IX Reading 1/15

Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI Walter [Compiler] Hamilton

Chapter IX

Chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI is here in full — 78 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

THE SECOND PHANTOM. One! The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang. Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room. The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI

Chapter IX

Chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI is here in full — 78 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/15 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

THE SECOND PHANTOM.

/ðə ˈsekənd ˈfæn.təm/

Line 2

One!

/wʌn/

Line 3

The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

Line 4

Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

Line 5

The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

Learner Dictionary

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.

clang noun US /klæŋ/

a loud resonant repeating noise

From this reading “The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.”

Haunted adjective US /ˈhɔːntɪd/

having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something

From this reading “The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.”

imperceptible adjective US /ˌɪmpərˈseptɪbəl/

impossible or difficult to perceive by the mind or senses

From this reading “The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.”

misty adjective US /ˈmɪsti/

filled or abounding with fog or mist

From this reading “The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.”

phantom noun US /ˈfæn.təm/

A ghost or apparition; a figment of the imagination or a hidden dweller.

From this reading “THE SECOND PHANTOM.”

reverberating adjective US /rɪˈvɜːrbəreɪtɪŋ/

characterized by resonance

From this reading “The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.”

rubbed verb US /rʌbd/

inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure

From this reading “The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.”

strode verb US /stroʊd/

inflected form of “stride” — walk with long steps

From this reading “Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

almost imperceptible adverb + adjective

In this reading “The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.”

front door noun + noun

exterior door (at the entrance) at the front of a building

In this reading “The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.”

along the passage preposition + article + noun counted as “along … passage”

In this reading “Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.”

library door noun + noun

In this reading “Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.”

into the room preposition + article + noun counted as “into … room”

In this reading “Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.”

died before verb + particle counted as “die before”

In this reading “The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.”

All words in this reading · 56

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

almostadverbUS /ˈɔːlmoʊst/

(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

alongprepositionUS /əˈlɔːŋ/

following the length of something from one end toward the other

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

bellnounUS /bel/

a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

bodynounUS /ˈbɑːdi/

the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

clangnounUS /klæŋ/

a loud resonant repeating noise

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

closedadjectiveUS /kloʊzd/

not open or affording passage or access

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

diedverbUS /daɪd/

past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

doornounUS /dɔːr/

a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

eyesnounUS /aɪz/

opinion or judgment

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

facenounUS /feɪs/

the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

far-offadjective

very far away in space or time

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

frontnounUS /frʌnt/

the side that is forward or prominent

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

hardlyadverbUS /ˈhɑːrdli/

only a very short time before

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

HauntedadjectiveUS /ˈhɔːntɪd/

having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

heardadjectiveUS /hɜːrd/

detected or perceived by the sense of hearing

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

imperceptibleadjectiveUS /ˌɪmpərˈseptɪbəl/

impossible or difficult to perceive by the mind or senses

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

itselfpronounUS /ˌɪtˈself/

used when the thing doing the action is also its object

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

Knockernoun

(Yiddish) a big shot who knows it and acts that way; a boastful immoderate person

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

Knocker's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

librarynounUS /ˈlaɪbreriː/

a room where books are kept

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

MannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

mistakenounUS /mɪˈsteɪk/

a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

mistyadjectiveUS /ˈmɪsti/

filled or abounding with fog or mist

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

mountedadjectiveUS /ˈmaʊntəd/

assembled for use; especially by being attached to a support

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

OnepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading One!

openverbUS /ˈoʊ.pən/

To move from a closed position.

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

passagenounUS /ˈpæsədʒ/

the act of passing from one state or place to the next

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

PHANTOMnounUS /ˈfæn.təm/

A ghost or apparition; a figment of the imagination or a hidden dweller.

From this reading THE SECOND PHANTOM.

reverberatingadjectiveUS /rɪˈvɜːrbəreɪtɪŋ/

characterized by resonance

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

roomnounUS /ruːm/

an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

rubbedverbUS /rʌbd/

inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

SECONDnounUS /ˈsekənd/

1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

From this reading THE SECOND PHANTOM.

slowlyadverbUS /ˈsloʊli/

without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

StepsnounUS /steps/

a flight of stairs or a flight of steps

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

strodeverbUS /stroʊd/

inflected form of “stride” — walk with long steps

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

strokenounUS /stroʊk/

(sports) the act of swinging or striking at a ball with a club or racket or bat or cue or hand

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

swungverbUS /swʌŋ/

inflected form of “swing” — move in a curve or arc, usually with the intent of hitting

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE SECOND PHANTOM.

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading The Haunted Man rubbed his eyes――no! there could be no mistake about it――it was the Knocker’s face, mounted on a misty, almost imperceptible body.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading The stroke of the far-off bell had hardly died before the front door closed with a reverberating clang.

yesnounUS /jes/

an affirmative

From this reading Steps were heard along the passage; the library door swung open of itself, and the Knocker――yes, the Knocker――slowly strode into the room.

Chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI by Walter [Compiler] Hamilton holds 78 sentences, grouped into 16 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.

What does chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI contain?

Chapter 9 holds 78 sentences of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI by Walter [Compiler] Hamilton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 78 sentences, grouped into 16 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.

How do I study chapter 9 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI?

Work through the 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 16 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 9 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.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #70548, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 600 minutes of reading across 3722 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI

Words and structures a reader meets early in Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. VI, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

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Chapter IX

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