Chapter 9 of Rookwood is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Rookwood is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder. "And mar my own chance," thought Jack. "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away. Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here. No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
Chapter 9 of Rookwood is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
one of a set of small pieces of stiff paper marked in various ways and used for playing games or for telling fortunes
From this reading “Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.”
make imperfect
From this reading “"And mar my own chance," thought Jack.”
Goods or treasure taken by force or theft, especially in war or banditry.
From this reading “Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.”
hit with a missile from a weapon
From this reading “"Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.”
plural of “thousand” — the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading “No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."”
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading “Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.”
United States writer and dramatist (1897-1975)
From this reading “"Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.”
a young person of either sex
From this reading “No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."”
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 Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
(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 Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
one of a set of small pieces of stiff paper marked in various ways and used for playing games or for telling fortunes
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
any physical damage to the body caused by violence or accident or fracture etc.
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
a small worthless amount
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
make imperfect
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
participate in games or sport
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
Goods or treasure taken by force or theft, especially in war or banditry.
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
hit with a missile from a weapon
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "And mar my own chance," thought Jack.
plural of “thousand” — the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading Be quiet," said he, in a whisper to Wilder; "I've another card to play, which shall serve us better than all the plunder here.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
United States writer and dramatist (1897-1975)
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "No, that will never do; his life is not to be thrown away.
an indefinite quantity of something having a specified value
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Why don't you shoot him on the spot?" said Wilder.
a young person of either sex
From this reading No harm must come to that youngster; his life is worth thousands to us."
Chapter 9 of Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 9 holds 411 sentences of Rookwood, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 9 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 Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9403 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #23564 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #23564, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1881 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Rookwood section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Rookwood 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 Rookwood, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
