Chapter 4 of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said: “I have an ailing father. When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here. They have promised.” “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
Chapter 4 of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
somewhat ill or prone to illness
From this reading ““I have an ailing father.”
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading “The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:”
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading “When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.”
become part of; become a member of a group or organization
From this reading “When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.”
in motion
From this reading “The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:”
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading “They have promised.””
a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading “The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:”
inflected form of “throw” — propel through the air
From this reading “The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:”
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.
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 “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
somewhat ill or prone to illness
From this reading “I have an ailing father.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “I have an ailing father.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
the wood from bushes or small branches
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading “I have an ailing father.
start firing a weapon
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I have an ailing father.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I have an ailing father.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
become part of; become a member of a group or organization
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
in motion
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading They have promised.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They have promised.”
inflected form of “throw” — propel through the air
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The Tartar threw more brushwood into the fire, and, moving closer to it, said:
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
at the time that
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading When he dies, my mother and my wife will join me here.
an upstart who makes conceited, sardonic, insolent comments
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “What do you want with a mother and a wife?” asked Wiseacre.
Chapter 4 of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 by J. Berg (Joseph Berg) [Editor] Esenwein holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 4 holds 422 sentences of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 by J. Berg (Joseph Berg) [Editor] Esenwein exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 4 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 Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 by J. Berg (Joseph Berg) [Editor] Esenwein 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 Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4 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 Short-story masterpieces, Vol. 4, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
