Chapter 15 of Pole Baker: A Novel is here in full — 393 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Pole Baker: A Novel is here in full — 393 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing. “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile. “You look busy.” Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled. “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
Chapter 15 of Pole Baker: A Novel is here in full — 393 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
plural of “clerk” — an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
plural of “customer” — someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion
From this reading ““Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.”
a state of confusion and disorderliness
From this reading ““The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.”
a long (usually round) rod of wood or metal or plastic
From this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
an orderly pile
From this reading “Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.”
time long past
From this reading ““Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.”
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 ““The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
belong to an earlier time
In this reading “Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.”
In this reading “Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.”
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 Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
exceptionally bad or displeasing
From this reading “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading “You look busy.”
plural of “clerk” — an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
plural of “customer” — someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “You look busy.”
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
a state of confusion and disorderliness
From this reading “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
having a point
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
a long (usually round) rod of wood or metal or plastic
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
an orderly pile
From this reading Floyd pointed to a stack of account-books on the desk and smiled.
a mercantile establishment for the retail sale of goods or services
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading “The old man got these in an awful mess,” he said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
the act of changing or reversing the direction of the course
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
in or at the place that
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
the act of creating written works
From this reading Turning from the old man, Pole passed the clerks and a few customers in the store and went back to Floyd's desk, where his friend sat writing.
time long past
From this reading “Got yore workin' gear on I see,” he observed, with a smile.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You look busy.”
Chapter 15 of Pole Baker: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben holds 393 sentences, grouped into 79 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 15 holds 393 sentences of Pole Baker: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Pole Baker: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 393 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 15 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 Pole Baker: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6097 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51918 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51918, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 508 minutes of reading across 1220 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Pole Baker: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of Pole Baker: A Novel 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 Pole Baker: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
