Chapter 1 of Pyramids of snow is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Pyramids of snow is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PYRAMIDS OF SNOW. EDITH METCALFE. "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler. Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow." WILLIAM DE BRITAINE.
Chapter 1 of Pyramids of snow is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
indicate, as with a sign or an omen
From this reading “"I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.”
plural of “gain” — a quantity that is added
From this reading “Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."”
a person who wagers money on the outcome of games or sporting events
From this reading “"I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.”
the process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid
From this reading “Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."”
plural of “pyramid” — a polyhedron having a polygonal base and triangular sides with a common vertex
From this reading “PYRAMIDS OF SNOW.”
a treacherous situation that tends to entrap and destroy
From this reading “Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."”
-ing form of “swallow” — pass through the esophagus as part of eating or drinking
From this reading “Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."”
the contestant who wins the contest
From this reading “Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."”
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 “PYRAMIDS OF SNOW.”
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 "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
possessing life
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
indicate, as with a sign or an omen
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading WILLIAM DE BRITAINE.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading WILLIAM DE BRITAINE.
get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading EDITH METCALFE.
one or the other of two
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
an event (or a course of events) that will inevitably happen in the future
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
plural of “gain” — a quantity that is added
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
a person who wagers money on the outcome of games or sporting events
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
the process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading EDITH METCALFE.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading PYRAMIDS OF SNOW.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
plural of “pyramid” — a polyhedron having a polygonal base and triangular sides with a common vertex
From this reading PYRAMIDS OF SNOW.
with speed
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
a treacherous situation that tends to entrap and destroy
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading PYRAMIDS OF SNOW.
-ing form of “swallow” — pass through the esophagus as part of eating or drinking
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
express in words
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
moral weakness
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading WILLIAM DE BRITAINE.
the contestant who wins the contest
From this reading Either the vice will end by swallowing you up alive as a quicksand does, or if you are a winner, your gains will disappear more quickly than they came, melting like pyramids of snow."
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I can tell you without the help of an augur what will be your fate you become a gambler.
Chapter 1 of Pyramids of snow by Edith Metcalfe holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 118 sentences of Pyramids of snow, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Pyramids of snow by Edith Metcalfe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Pyramids of snow, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
