Chapter 3 of Stolen Idols is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Stolen Idols is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?" "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm. "Have you ever dined more strangely?" "I don't think I have," he confessed. "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
Chapter 3 of Stolen Idols is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
past form of “confess” — confess to a punishable or reprehensible deed, usually under pressure
From this reading “"I don't think I have," he confessed.”
past form of “dine” — have supper; eat dinner
From this reading “"Have you ever dined more strangely?"”
past form of “enjoy” — derive or receive pleasure from; get enjoyment from; take pleasure in
From this reading “"Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"”
a feeling of excitement
From this reading “"Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.”
used as intensifiers
From this reading “"It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.”
(Roman Catholic Church) a church father known for his constant fight against perceived heresies; a saint and Doctor of the Church (329-391)
From this reading “"Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"”
to an exceedingly great extent or degree
From this reading “"Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.”
in a strange manner
From this reading “"Have you ever dined more strangely?"”
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 “"Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"”
In this reading “"Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.”
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.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
past form of “confess” — confess to a punishable or reprehensible deed, usually under pressure
From this reading "I don't think I have," he confessed.
past form of “dine” — have supper; eat dinner
From this reading "Have you ever dined more strangely?"
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't think I have," he confessed.
past form of “enjoy” — derive or receive pleasure from; get enjoyment from; take pleasure in
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
a feeling of excitement
From this reading "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.
at any time
From this reading "Have you ever dined more strangely?"
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
used as intensifiers
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
(Roman Catholic Church) a church father known for his constant fight against perceived heresies; a saint and Doctor of the Church (329-391)
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't think I have," he confessed.
to an exceedingly great extent or degree
From this reading "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
showing or feeling mirth or pleasure or happiness
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "Have you ever dined more strangely?"
used to form the superlative
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
in a strange manner
From this reading "Have you ever dined more strangely?"
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I don't think I have," he confessed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It was most frightfully kind of your uncle to ask me.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Immensely," he answered, with enthusiasm.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Well," Claire exclaimed, laughing at Gregory Ballaston across the table, "how have you enjoyed your dinner?"
Chapter 3 of Stolen Idols by E. Phillips (Edward Phillips) Oppenheim holds 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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 181 sentences of Stolen Idols, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Stolen Idols by E. Phillips (Edward Phillips) Oppenheim exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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.
Common questions about reading Stolen Idols by E. Phillips (Edward Phillips) Oppenheim on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5871 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45636 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45636, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 489 minutes of reading across 1175 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Stolen Idols section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of Stolen Idols 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 Stolen Idols, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
