Chapter 1 of Spaceman on a Spree is here in full — 547 sentences across 110 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Spaceman on a Spree is here in full — 547 sentences across 110 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life? They gave him a gold watch. It was meant to be symbolical, of course. In the old tradition. It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
Chapter 1 of Spaceman on a Spree is here in full — 547 sentences across 110 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/109 · 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.
relating to or characteristic of alps
From this reading “It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.”
made in or typical of earlier times and valued for its age
From this reading “It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.”
a particular geographical region of indefinite boundary (usually serving some special purpose or distinguished by its people or culture or geography)
From this reading “It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.”
the act of conquering
From this reading “What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?”
plural of “generation” — all the people living at the same time or of approximately the same age
From this reading “It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.”
of great significance or value
From this reading “What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?”
the unlimited expanse in which everything is located
From this reading “What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?”
an inherited pattern of thought or action
From this reading “In the old tradition.”
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.
as might be expected
In this reading “It was meant to be symbolical, of course.”
In this reading “In the old tradition.”
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 They gave him a gold watch.
relating to or characteristic of alps
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
made in or typical of earlier times and valued for its age
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
a particular geographical region of indefinite boundary (usually serving some special purpose or distinguished by its people or culture or geography)
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
the act of conquering
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading They gave him a gold watch.
plural of “generation” — all the people living at the same time or of approximately the same age
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
coins made of gold
From this reading They gave him a gold watch.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They gave him a gold watch.
of great significance or value
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In the old tradition.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading In the old tradition.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
the time that has elapsed
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
the unlimited expanse in which everything is located
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
relating to or using or proceeding by means of symbols
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading In the old tradition.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They gave him a gold watch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
an inherited pattern of thought or action
From this reading In the old tradition.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was meant to be symbolical, of course.
look attentively
From this reading They gave him a gold watch.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading It was in the way of an antique, being one of the timepieces made generations past in the Alpine area of Eur-Asia.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's more important--Man's conquest of space, or one spaceman's life?
Chapter 1 of Spaceman on a Spree by Mack Reynolds holds 547 sentences, grouped into 110 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 1 holds 547 sentences of Spaceman on a Spree, unabridged, divided into 110 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Spaceman on a Spree by Mack Reynolds exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 547 sentences, grouped into 110 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 110 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 110 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 1 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 Spaceman on a Spree by Mack Reynolds on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 547 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52995 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52995, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 45 minutes of reading across 110 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Spaceman on a Spree section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of Spaceman on a Spree 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 Spaceman on a Spree, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
