Chapter 1 of Sea urchins 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 I
Chapter 1 of Sea urchins is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin. Fust v’y’ge, sir?” “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen. “Not so fast with those timbers of yours. D’ye hear?”
Chapter 1 of Sea urchins 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.
the cardinal number that is the sum of thirteen and one
From this reading ““Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.”
showing warm and heartfelt friendliness
From this reading ““Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.”
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading ““Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.”
(law) someone who owns (is legal possessor of) a business
From this reading ““Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.”
-ing form of “shoulder” — lift onto one's shoulders
From this reading ““Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.”
(especially of eyes) bulging or protruding as with fear
From this reading ““Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.”
plural of “timber” — the wood of trees cut and prepared for use as building material
From this reading ““Not so fast with those timbers of yours.”
run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading ““Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.”
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 “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
conspicuously new
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading D’ye hear?”
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
the cardinal number that is the sum of thirteen and one
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Fust v’y’ge, sir?”
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading D’ye hear?”
showing warm and heartfelt friendliness
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
a boy or man
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
(law) someone who owns (is legal possessor of) a business
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
having or caused by an irregular surface
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
-ing form of “shoulder” — lift onto one's shoulders
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
term of address for a man
From this reading Fust v’y’ge, sir?”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “Ay, ay, my hearty,” replied the owner of the chest, a small, ill-looking lad of fourteen.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
(especially of eyes) bulging or protruding as with fear
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
plural of “timber” — the wood of trees cut and prepared for use as building material
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Fust v’y’ge, sir?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
the one or ones belonging to the person spoken to
From this reading “Not so fast with those timbers of yours.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Wapping Old Stairs?” said the rough individual, shouldering the bran-new sea-chest, and starting off at a trot with it; “yus, I know the place, captin.
Chapter 1 of Sea urchins by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs 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 1 holds 411 sentences of Sea urchins, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Sea urchins by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs 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 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.
Common questions about reading Sea urchins by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3210 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21931 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21931, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 267 minutes of reading across 642 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sea urchins section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Sea urchins 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 Sea urchins, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
