Chapter 5 of Stopping the leak is here in full — 79 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Stopping the leak is here in full — 79 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FARM VERSUS RUM. LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage. This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices. There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile. It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
Chapter 5 of Stopping the leak is here in full — 79 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/15 · 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.
third-person singular of “hear” — perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading “This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.”
sing with closed lips
From this reading “This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.”
low or inferior in station or quality
From this reading “LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.”
cause to come to know personally
From this reading “LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.”
plural of “misfortune” — unnecessary and unforeseen trouble resulting from an unfortunate event
From this reading “It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."”
despite anything to the contrary (usually preceding a concession)
From this reading “It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."”
liquor distilled from fermented molasses
From this reading “FARM VERSUS RUM.”
having rugged physical strength; inured to fatigue or hardships
From this reading “LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.”
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 “LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.”
In this reading “This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.”
In this reading “LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.”
In this reading “This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.”
In this reading “This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.”
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 LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
a small house with a single story
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
dearly loved
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
be a farmer; work as a farmer
From this reading FARM VERSUS RUM.
a movable barrier in a fence or wall
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
third-person singular of “hear” — perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
sing with closed lips
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
low or inferior in station or quality
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
cause to come to know personally
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
and nothing more
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
indicating the most important performer or role
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
plural of “misfortune” — unnecessary and unforeseen trouble resulting from an unfortunate event
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
despite anything to the contrary (usually preceding a concession)
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
an open or empty space in or between things
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
a person who enjoys reading
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
liquor distilled from fermented molasses
From this reading FARM VERSUS RUM.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
having rugged physical strength; inured to fatigue or hardships
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
great in vertical dimension; high in stature
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It might have said,— "They seem happy notwithstanding our misfortunes."
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading FARM VERSUS RUM.
plural of “voice” — the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading This is his home, and through the open windows he hears the hum of merry voices.
but in spite of that
From this reading There is a smile on his face, and yet not a glad smile.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading LET me introduce you, dear reader, to a tall, stalwart man just opening the gate leading through a potato-patch to an humble cottage.
Chapter 5 of Stopping the leak by Madeline Leslie holds 79 sentences, grouped into 16 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 5 holds 79 sentences of Stopping the leak, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Stopping the leak by Madeline Leslie exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 79 sentences, grouped into 16 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 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 16 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 5 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 Stopping the leak by Madeline Leslie 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 Stopping the leak section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Stopping the leak 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 Stopping the leak, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
