Chapter 4 of Returned Empty is here in full — 467 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Returned Empty is here in full — 467 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman. “Miriam! Belovèd!” His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water. Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
Chapter 4 of Returned Empty is here in full — 467 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/93 · 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.
-ing form of “burst” — come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure
From this reading “His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.”
inflected form of “fight” — be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading “The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.”
plural of “lung” — either of two saclike respiratory organs in the chest of vertebrates; serves to remove carbon dioxide and provide oxygen to the blood
From this reading “His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.”
an insane person
From this reading “The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.”
compacted by ironing
From this reading “Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.”
a large number or amount
From this reading “Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.”
a black garment (dress) worn by a widow as a sign of mourning
From this reading “The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.”
the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity
From this reading “Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.”
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 weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.”
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 The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Belovèd!”
-ing form of “burst” — come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
inflected form of “fight” — be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
held up in the air
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
plural of “lung” — either of two saclike respiratory organs in the chest of vertebrates; serves to remove carbon dioxide and provide oxygen to the blood
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
an insane person
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Miriam!
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
compacted by ironing
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
a large number or amount
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
a black garment (dress) worn by a widow as a sign of mourning
From this reading The weeds had him this time, but he fought like a madman.
the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity
From this reading Tons weight pressed down his hands, but he lifted them.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading His lungs were bursting, but he kept out the water.
Chapter 4 of Returned Empty by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay holds 467 sentences, grouped into 94 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 4 holds 467 sentences of Returned Empty, unabridged, divided into 94 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Returned Empty by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 467 sentences, grouped into 94 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 94 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 94 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 4 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 Returned Empty by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2253 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60307 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #60307, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 187 minutes of reading across 451 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Returned Empty section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Returned Empty 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 Returned Empty, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
