Chapter 1 of Pictures Don't Lie is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Pictures Don't Lie is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure. And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie! The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen? Are they friendly?
Chapter 1 of Pictures Don't Lie is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/100 · 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.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading “And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!”
plural of “alien” — a person who comes from a foreign country; someone who does not owe allegiance to your country
From this reading “The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?”
characteristic of or befitting a friend
From this reading “Are they friendly?”
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading “Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.”
a form of address for a man
From this reading “The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?”
plural of “picture” — a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading “Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.”
extremely
From this reading “And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!”
trying something to find out about it
From this reading “Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.”
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.
keep in mind for attention or consideration
In this reading “The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?”
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.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
plural of “alien” — a person who comes from a foreign country; someone who does not owe allegiance to your country
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Are they friendly?
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
characteristic of or befitting a friend
From this reading Are they friendly?
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
a form of address for a man
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
information about recent and important events
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
plural of “picture” — a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
extremely
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
trying something to find out about it
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Pictures, that is, that one can test and measure.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading And these pictures positively, absolutely could not lie!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Are they friendly?
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading The man from the _News_ asked, "What do you think of the aliens, Mister Nathen?
Chapter 1 of Pictures Don't Lie by Katherine MacLean holds 504 sentences, grouped into 101 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 504 sentences of Pictures Don't Lie, unabridged, divided into 101 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Pictures Don't Lie by Katherine MacLean exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 504 sentences, grouped into 101 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 101 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 101 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 Pictures Don't Lie by Katherine MacLean on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 504 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51193 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51193, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 42 minutes of reading across 101 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Pictures Don't Lie section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of Pictures Don't Lie 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 Pictures Don't Lie, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
