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"Persons Unknown"
"Persons Unknown"

Chapter X

Chapter 10 of "Persons Unknown" is here in full — 95 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for "Persons Unknown"
Context Illustration Reading 1/19 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.
He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.
Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.
This room had existed this morning!
And so had he!
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

"Persons Unknown"

Chapter X

Chapter 10 of "Persons Unknown" is here in full — 95 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/19 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.
/ˈherɪk rəˈsiːvz ə ˈteləfoʊn ˈmesədʒ ˈherɪk keɪm hoʊm θruː ə wɜːrld wɪtʃ hiː hæd ˈnevər siːn bɪˈfɔːr ˈblaɪndli klaɪmd hɪz θriː flaɪts ʌv sterz ənd ˈʃʌtɪŋ hɪmˈself ˈɪntuː hɪz ruːm sæt daʊn ɑːn hɪz bed/
Line 2
He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.
Line 3
Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.
Line 4
This room had existed this morning!
/ðɪs ruːm hæd ɪɡˈzɪstəd ðɪs ˈmɔːrnɪŋ/
Line 5
And so had he!
/ənd soʊ hæd hiː/

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.

blindly adverb US /ˈblaɪndli/

without seeing or looking

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

drugged adjective US /drʌɡd/

under the influence of narcotics

From this reading “He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.”

existed verb US /ɪɡˈzɪstəd/

past form of “exist” — have an existence, be extant

From this reading “This room had existed this morning!”

flights noun US /flaɪts/

plural of “flight” — a formation of aircraft in flight

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

herrick noun US /ˈherɪk/

English lyric poet (1591-1674)

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

receives verb US /rəˈsiːvz/

third-person singular of “receive” — get something; come into possession of

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

shutting noun US /ˈʃʌtɪŋ/

the act of closing something

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

telephone noun US /ˈteləfoʊn/

electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds

From this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

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.

TELEPHONE MESSAGE noun + noun

a message transmitted by telephone

In this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

across the floor preposition + article + noun counted as “across … floor”

In this reading “He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.”

came home verb + noun counted as “come home”

become clear or enter one's consciousness or emotions

In this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

stared across verb + particle counted as “stare across”

In this reading “He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.”

in the world preposition + article + noun counted as “in … world”

In this reading “Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.”

three flights noun + noun counted as “three flight”

In this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

like a man verb + article + noun counted as “like … man”

In this reading “He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.”

through a world preposition + article + noun counted as “through … world”

In this reading “HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.”

All words in this reading · 51

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 HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

acrossprepositionUS /əˈkrɔːs/

from one side of something to the other

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

bednounUS /bed/

a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

blindlyadverbUS /ˈblaɪndli/

without seeing or looking

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

climbedverbUS /klaɪmd/

past form of “climb” — go upward with gradual or continuous progress

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

downadjectiveUS /daʊn/

being or moving lower in position or less in some value

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

druggedadjectiveUS /drʌɡd/

under the influence of narcotics

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

existedverbUS /ɪɡˈzɪstəd/

past form of “exist” — have an existence, be extant

From this reading This room had existed this morning!

flightsnounUS /flaɪts/

plural of “flight” — a formation of aircraft in flight

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

floornounUS /flɔːr/

the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

HERRICKnounUS /ˈherɪk/

English lyric poet (1591-1674)

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

homenounUS /hoʊm/

where you live at a particular time

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

justadverbUS /dʒʌst/

and nothing more

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

likeverbUS /laɪk/

prefer or wish to do something

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

mannounUS /mæn/

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

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

MESSAGEnounUS /ˈmesədʒ/

a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

morningnounUS /ˈmɔːrnɪŋ/

the time period between dawn and noon

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

RECEIVESverbUS /rəˈsiːvz/

third-person singular of “receive” — get something; come into possession of

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

roomnounUS /ruːm/

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

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

seenverbUS /siːn/

inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

shuttingnounUS /ˈʃʌtɪŋ/

the act of closing something

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading And so had he!

stairsnounUS /sterz/

a flight of stairs or a flight of steps

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

staredverbUS /sterd/

past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

TELEPHONEnounUS /ˈteləfoʊn/

electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

threenounUS /θriː/

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

wall-paper

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

From this reading He stared across the floor at the wall-paper, like a man drugged.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

worldnounUS /wɜːrld/

everything that exists anywhere

From this reading HERRICK RECEIVES A TELEPHONE MESSAGE Herrick came home through a world which he had never seen before, blindly climbed his three flights of stairs, and, shutting himself into his room, sat down on his bed.

YesnounUS /jes/

an affirmative

From this reading Yes, there was wall-paper in the world, just as there had been this morning.

Chapter 10 of "Persons Unknown" by Virginia, -1946 Tracy holds 95 sentences, grouped into 19 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 10 of "Persons Unknown" contain?

Chapter 10 holds 95 sentences of "Persons Unknown", unabridged, divided into 19 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 10 of "Persons Unknown" by Virginia, -1946 Tracy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 95 sentences, grouped into 19 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 10 of "Persons Unknown"?

Work through the 19 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 19 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.

Can chapter 10 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 10 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.

Questions about reading "Persons Unknown"

Common questions about reading "Persons Unknown" by Virginia, -1946 Tracy on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of "Persons Unknown"?

Yes. All 9652 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37545 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of "Persons Unknown" is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #37545, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does "Persons Unknown" take to read?

About 600 minutes of reading across 1931 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read "Persons Unknown" section by section

How to work through "Persons Unknown" section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 40 chapters of "Persons Unknown" to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in "Persons Unknown"

Words and structures a reader meets early in "Persons Unknown", each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Century
A word that appears in the opening chapter of "Persons Unknown"; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Winter's
A word that appears in the opening chapter of "Persons Unknown"; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Breath
A word that appears in the opening chapter of "Persons Unknown"; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Through
A word that appears in the opening chapter of "Persons Unknown"; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.