Chapter 5 of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn is here in full — 450 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn is here in full — 450 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Interest," said Haco. "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?" "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently. "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully. At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
Chapter 5 of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn is here in full — 450 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
with confidence; in a confident manner
From this reading “"Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.”
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading “At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.”
a sharp metal spike or spur that is fastened to the leg of a gamecock
From this reading “"If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.”
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading “"Interest," said Haco.”
give money, usually in exchange for goods or services
From this reading “"Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"”
a student who fails to attend classes
From this reading “"Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.”
United States painter best known for his portraits of George Washington (1755-1828)
From this reading “At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.”
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading “"If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.”
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.
(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 "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
with confidence; in a confident manner
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
a sharp metal spike or spur that is fastened to the leg of a gamecock
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Interest," said Haco.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading "Interest," said Haco.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
a particular point in time
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
and nothing more
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
give money, usually in exchange for goods or services
From this reading "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Interest," said Haco.
a student who fails to attend classes
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
United States painter best known for his portraits of George Washington (1755-1828)
From this reading At that moment the door opened, and Kenneth Stuart entered, followed by his friend Gildart Bingley.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "If I only knew how much it is to be," said Mrs Gaff thoughtfully.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "Ay, interest--would pay for all that?"
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, an' more," said the skipper confidently.
Chapter 5 of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne holds 450 sentences, grouped into 90 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 5 holds 450 sentences of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn, unabridged, divided into 90 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 450 sentences, grouped into 90 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 90 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 90 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 5 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 Winds: A Tough Yarn by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3982 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21702 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21702, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 331 minutes of reading across 797 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Shifting Winds: A Tough Yarn 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 Winds: A Tough Yarn, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
