Chapter 18 of Project Daedalus is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of Project Daedalus is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The elder Androv stared at him. For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey. They were right. All these years he'd never given him enough credit. "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
Chapter 18 of Project Daedalus is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading “"I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.”
approval
From this reading “All these years he'd never given him enough credit.”
a person who is older than you are
From this reading “The elder Androv stared at him.”
an airplane powered by one or more jet engines
From this reading “For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.”
defeat someone through trickery or deceit
From this reading “For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.”
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading “"I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.”
showing mental alertness and calculation and resourcefulness
From this reading “For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “The elder Androv stared at him.”
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 elder Androv stared at him.”
In this reading “For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.”
In this reading “For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.”
In this reading “All these years he'd never given him enough credit.”
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 For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
approval
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
a person who is older than you are
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
an airplane powered by one or more jet engines
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
defeat someone through trickery or deceit
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
precisely, exactly
From this reading They were right.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
showing mental alertness and calculation and resourcefulness
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
a male human offspring
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The elder Androv stared at him.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading All these years he'd never given him enough credit.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They were right.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They were right.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
a late time of life
From this reading For years people had told him his son was too smart to be a jet jockey.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I think I'm beginning to understand what you're saying.
Chapter 18 of Project Daedalus by Thomas Hoover holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 409 sentences of Project Daedalus, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of Project Daedalus by Thomas Hoover exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 Project Daedalus by Thomas Hoover on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 12245 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34320 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34320, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2449 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Project Daedalus section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of Project Daedalus 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 Project Daedalus, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
