Chapter 18 of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp is here in full — 194 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp is here in full — 194 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door. It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside. After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall. Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room. She paused at the door and listened again.
Chapter 18 of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp is here in full — 194 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/38 · 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.
aroused to action
From this reading “Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.”
past form of “capture” — succeed in representing or expressing something intangible
From this reading “Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.”
a person who is professionally engaged in the analysis and interpretation of works of art
From this reading “Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.”
inflected form of “rap” — strike sharply
From this reading “Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.”
plural of “suspicion” — an impression that something might be the case
From this reading “Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.”
past form of “tiptoe” — walk on one's toes
From this reading “After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.”
having passed out of existence
From this reading “It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.”
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 “After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.”
by a factor of three
In this reading “Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.”
In this reading “She paused at the door and listened again.”
In this reading “After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.”
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 After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
later than; following
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
anew
From this reading She paused at the door and listened again.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
aroused to action
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
an old form of “are”, used with “thou”
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She paused at the door and listened again.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
past form of “capture” — succeed in representing or expressing something intangible
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
a person who is professionally engaged in the analysis and interpretation of works of art
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
characterized by great determination
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
the act of departing
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading She paused at the door and listened again.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
past form of “pause” — interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
From this reading She paused at the door and listened again.
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
inflected form of “rap” — strike sharply
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
plural of “suspicion” — an impression that something might be the case
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading Captured The art critic rapped three times on the door.
past form of “tiptoe” — walk on one's toes
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
having passed out of existence
From this reading It opened instantly and closed after him as he vanished inside.
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
From this reading After waiting a few minutes, Penny tiptoed back down the hall.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Her suspicions had been aroused and she was determined to learn what was going on inside the room.
Chapter 18 of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp by Joan Clark holds 194 sentences, grouped into 39 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 18 holds 194 sentences of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp by Joan Clark exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 194 sentences, grouped into 39 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 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 39 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 18 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 Penny Nichols and the Black Imp by Joan Clark on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3573 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33382 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33382, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 297 minutes of reading across 715 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Penny Nichols and the Black Imp section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Penny Nichols and the Black Imp 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 Penny Nichols and the Black Imp, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
