Chapter VI of Secret of the Earth Star, “Before the Gods,” is here in full — 266 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter VI of Secret of the Earth Star, “Before the Gods,” is here in full — 266 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened. The monster on the throne spoke. Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne. “Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned. “It’s Brady—Brady!”
Chapter VI of Secret of the Earth Star, “Before the Gods,” is here in full — 266 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/53 · 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.
United States pioneer photographer famous for his portraits; was the official Union photographer for the American Civil War (1823-1896)
From this reading ““It’s Brady—Brady!””
without compunction or human feeling
From this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading ““Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned.”
an imaginary creature usually having various human and animal parts
From this reading “The monster on the throne spoke.”
the open circular discharging end of a gun
From this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
put in motion or move to act
From this reading “Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.”
past form of “twitch” — make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion
From this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
poorly articulated or enunciated, or drowned by noise
From this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
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.
express without restraint
In this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
In this reading “Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.”
In this reading “The monster on the throne spoke.”
In this reading “Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.”
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.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
United States pioneer photographer famous for his portraits; was the official Union photographer for the American Civil War (1823-1896)
From this reading “It’s Brady—Brady!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading “Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned.
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
without compunction or human feeling
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “It’s Brady—Brady!”
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading “Don’t!” the bull-headed creature moaned.
an imaginary creature usually having various human and animal parts
From this reading The monster on the throne spoke.
the open circular discharging end of a gun
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
and nothing more
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
past form of “pour” — cause to run
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading The monster on the throne spoke.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
not thin; of a specific thickness or of relatively great extent from one surface to the opposite usually in the smallest of the three solid dimensions
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
a special situation
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
the chair of state for a monarch, bishop, etc.
From this reading The monster on the throne spoke.
put in motion or move to act
From this reading Only one thing could have stopped Desquer’s finger on the trigger—and that thing happened.
past form of “twitch” — make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
poorly articulated or enunciated, or drowned by noise
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Thick and almost unintelligible, its voice poured out from the inhuman muzzle, as the hands twitched on the arms of the throne.
Chapter 6 of Secret of the Earth Star by Henry Kuttner holds 266 sentences, grouped into 54 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 6 holds 266 sentences of Secret of the Earth Star, unabridged, divided into 54 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of Secret of the Earth Star by Henry Kuttner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 266 sentences, grouped into 54 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 54 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 54 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 6 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 Secret of the Earth Star by Henry Kuttner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Secret of the Earth Star section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Secret of the Earth Star 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 Secret of the Earth Star, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
