Chapter 1 of Pathfinder is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Pathfinder is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail. And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise." "Say, it's a message, all right." "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you." "What do you say, Matty?
Chapter 1 of Pathfinder is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
tough protective covering of the woody stems and roots of trees and other woody plants
From this reading “And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."”
hard close-grained wood of any of various birch trees; used especially in furniture and interior finishes and plywood
From this reading “And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."”
plural of “grip” — the act of grasping
From this reading “And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."”
plural of “jaw” — the part of the skull of a vertebrate that frames the mouth and holds the teeth
From this reading “And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."”
someone who can find paths through unexplored territory
From this reading “"And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."”
in a vertical position; not sloping
From this reading “"Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.”
a holding device attached to a workbench; has two jaws to hold workpiece firmly in place
From this reading “And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."”
a writ from a court commanding police to perform specified acts
From this reading “"And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."”
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 "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "Say, it's a message, all right."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
tough protective covering of the woody stems and roots of trees and other woody plants
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
hard close-grained wood of any of various birch trees; used especially in furniture and interior finishes and plywood
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
(used of hooves) split, divided
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "What do you say, Matty?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
plural of “fellow” — a boy or man
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
plural of “grip” — the act of grasping
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Say, it's a message, all right."
plural of “jaw” — the part of the skull of a vertebrate that frames the mouth and holds the teeth
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What do you say, Matty?
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading "Say, it's a message, all right."
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
someone who can find paths through unexplored territory
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
a separate part of a whole
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
precisely, exactly
From this reading "Say, it's a message, all right."
express in words
From this reading "Say, it's a message, all right."
having a supporting base
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
put, fix, force, or implant
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
a track or mark left by something that has passed
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
in a vertical position; not sloping
From this reading "Hold on, boys; here's a stick standing upright in the trail.
a holding device attached to a workbench; has two jaws to hold workpiece firmly in place
From this reading And look, fellows, there's a piece of nice new birch bark held fast in the cloven end, that grips it like the jaws of a vise."
a writ from a court commanding police to perform specified acts
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What do you say, Matty?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "And from our crack-a-jack pathfinder, Elmer Chenowith, too, I warrant you."
Chapter 1 of Pathfinder by Alan, Captain Douglas holds 137 sentences, grouped into 28 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 1 holds 137 sentences of Pathfinder, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Pathfinder by Alan, Captain Douglas exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 137 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 1 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 Pathfinder by Alan, Captain Douglas on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Pathfinder section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Pathfinder 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 Pathfinder, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
