Chapter 12 of Space Tug is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Space Tug is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter. After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake. And the mistake was fatal! When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets. But the damage had been done.
Chapter 12 of Space Tug is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
the occurrence of a change for the worse
From this reading “But the damage had been done.”
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading “After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.”
lack of experience and the knowledge and understanding derived from experience
From this reading “Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.”
failure to act with the prudence that a reasonable person would exercise under the same circumstances
From this reading “Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.”
an act of formulating a program for a definite course of action
From this reading “After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.”
successfully completed or brought to an end
From this reading “When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.”
plural of “rocket” — any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading “When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.”
a poor ability to understand or to profit from experience
From this reading “Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.”
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 After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
later than; following
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading But the damage had been done.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the damage had been done.
separate with or as if with an instrument
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
the occurrence of a change for the worse
From this reading But the damage had been done.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading But the damage had been done.
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
bringing death
From this reading And the mistake was fatal!
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
characteristic of humanity
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
lack of experience and the knowledge and understanding derived from experience
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
not compact or dense in structure or arrangement
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
failure to act with the prudence that a reasonable person would exercise under the same circumstances
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
an act of formulating a program for a definite course of action
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
successfully completed or brought to an end
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
a rational motive for a belief or action
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
plural of “rocket” — any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
a poor ability to understand or to profit from experience
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Inexperience, stupidity, negligence, excitement--the reason didn't matter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And the mistake was fatal!
at the time that
From this reading When the mistake was realized, they'd had sense enough to cut loose the still-firing rockets.
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
a late time of life
From this reading After years of planning and working and dreaming, one human finger had made a mistake.
Chapter 12 of Space Tug by Murray Leinster holds 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 12 holds 395 sentences of Space Tug, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Space Tug by Murray Leinster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 12 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 Space Tug by Murray Leinster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4809 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18719 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18719, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 400 minutes of reading across 962 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Space Tug section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Space Tug 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 Space Tug, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
