Chapter 3 of Short stories from the Balkans is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Short stories from the Balkans is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Now hand me the saw,” commanded George. A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger. Now their plan was clear. Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines. When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
Chapter 3 of Short stories from the Balkans is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
a long flexible steel coil for dislodging stoppages in curved pipes
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
past form of “command” — be in command of
From this reading ““Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.”
plural of “corner” — a place off to the side of an area
From this reading “Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines.”
plural of “hole” — an opening into or through something
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
being of delicate or slender build
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
in a swift manner
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
having similarity in size, shape, and relative position of corresponding parts
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
act in concert or unite in a common purpose or belief
From this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
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 “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
In this reading “A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.”
have a breach in relations
In this reading “When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.”
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 A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
a long flexible steel coil for dislodging stoppages in curved pipes
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
rid of obstructions
From this reading Now their plan was clear.
past form of “command” — be in command of
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
plural of “corner” — a place off to the side of an area
From this reading Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
descend in free fall under the influence of gravity
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
Christian martyr; patron saint of England; hero of the legend of Saint George and the Dragon in which he slew a dragon and saved a princess (?-303)
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
plural of “hole” — an opening into or through something
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
plural of “line” — a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
an open or empty space in or between things
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading Now their plan was clear.
cut with a saw
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
being of delicate or slender build
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
make square
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
in a swift manner
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
having similarity in size, shape, and relative position of corresponding parts
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Now hand me the saw,” commanded George.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Now their plan was clear.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
act in concert or unite in a common purpose or belief
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
characterized by unity; being or joined into a single entity
From this reading Four holes; four corners--to be united by four lines.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A slender saw was slipped through the opening and began swiftly to unite the four symmetrical holes made by the auger.
at the time that
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading When this was done the square of wood would fall out, and an opening be made.
Chapter 3 of Short stories from the Balkans by Edna Worthley [Translator] Underwood holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 3 holds 419 sentences of Short stories from the Balkans, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Short stories from the Balkans by Edna Worthley [Translator] Underwood exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 3 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.
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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 Short stories from the Balkans section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Short stories from the Balkans, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
