Chapter 21 of "Piracy" is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of "Piracy" is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Virginia came only once again. Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock. Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive. He stood very still. And then an apparition came into the room.
Chapter 21 of "Piracy" is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
a ghostly appearing figure
From this reading “And then an apparition came into the room.”
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading “Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.”
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading “Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.”
according to the clock
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading “Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.”
worried and uneasy
From this reading “Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.”
make a dry crackling sound
From this reading “Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.”
a state in the eastern United States; one of the original 13 colonies; one of the Confederate States in the American Civil War
From this reading “Virginia came only once again.”
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 “Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.”
In this reading “And then an apparition came into the room.”
In this reading “Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.”
obtain, especially accidentally
In this reading “And then an apparition came into the room.”
In this reading “Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.”
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 Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
later than; following
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
anew
From this reading Virginia came only once again.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading And then an apparition came into the room.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And then an apparition came into the room.
a ghostly appearing figure
From this reading And then an apparition came into the room.
on or to one side
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Virginia came only once again.
a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
operate or control a vehicle
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading And then an apparition came into the room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
set down according to a plan
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
according to the clock
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
on one occasion
From this reading Virginia came only once again.
and nothing more
From this reading Virginia came only once again.
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
worried and uneasy
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
make a dry crackling sound
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
not in physical motion
From this reading He stood very still.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading He stood very still.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading Four nights later, a little after ten o’clock.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading And then an apparition came into the room.
precisely as stated
From this reading He stood very still.
a state in the eastern United States; one of the original 13 colonies; one of the Confederate States in the American Civil War
From this reading Virginia came only once again.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
at the time that
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Ivor, his book laid aside, was pacing the room in the suddenly restless way which was growing on him, when he heard the soft rustle of the car on the drive.
Chapter 21 of "Piracy" by Michael Arlen holds 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 21 holds 155 sentences of "Piracy", unabridged, divided into 31 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of "Piracy" by Michael Arlen exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 31 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 31 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 21 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 "Piracy" by Michael Arlen 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 "Piracy" section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of "Piracy" 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 "Piracy", each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
