Chapter 18 of Shifting Sands is here in full — 287 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of Shifting Sands is here in full — 287 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered. "What's the rumpus?" he demanded. "You heard?" "Heard? Certainly I heard," he laughed.
Chapter 18 of Shifting Sands is here in full — 287 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/57 · 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.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “Certainly I heard," he laughed.”
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading “"What's the rumpus?" he demanded.”
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
marked by eager anticipation
From this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
a low evergreen shrub of the family Ericaceae; has small bell-shaped pink or purple flowers
From this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading “Certainly I heard," he laughed.”
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
United States inventor who built a steam-powered automobile (1849-1918)
From this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
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 “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
In this reading “Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.”
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.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading Certainly I heard," he laughed.
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading "What's the rumpus?" he demanded.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
marked by eager anticipation
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "What's the rumpus?" he demanded.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "You heard?"
a low evergreen shrub of the family Ericaceae; has small bell-shaped pink or purple flowers
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Certainly I heard," he laughed.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading Certainly I heard," he laughed.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
the act of making a noisy disturbance
From this reading "What's the rumpus?" he demanded.
United States inventor who built a steam-powered automobile (1849-1918)
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
in the direction of
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What's the rumpus?" he demanded.
at the time that
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Stanley Heath was lying with expectant face turned toward the door when Sylvia entered.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You heard?"
Chapter 18 of Shifting Sands by Sara Ware Bassett holds 287 sentences, grouped into 58 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 18 holds 287 sentences of Shifting Sands, unabridged, divided into 58 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of Shifting Sands by Sara Ware Bassett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 287 sentences, grouped into 58 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 58 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 58 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 18 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 Shifting Sands by Sara Ware Bassett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5568 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43773 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43773, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 464 minutes of reading across 1114 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shifting Sands section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Shifting Sands 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 Shifting Sands, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
