Chapter 28 of Strong and Steady is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVIII
Chapter 28 of Strong and Steady is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
STRANGE ACQUAINTANCES. An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess. She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one. At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive. It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
Chapter 28 of Strong and Steady is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
plural of “acquaintance” — personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading “STRANGE ACQUAINTANCES.”
-ing form of “expect” — regard something as probable or likely
From this reading “She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.”
a woman host
From this reading “An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.”
weighing heavily on the senses or spirit
From this reading “At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.”
plural of “person” — a human being
From this reading “It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.”
unusual or striking
From this reading “An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.”
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.”
German conductor (1876-1962)
From this reading “At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.”
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 a lengthy or prolix manner
In this reading “At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.”
In this reading “It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.”
In this reading “At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.”
In this reading “An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.”
In this reading “An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.”
In this reading “It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.”
be vigilant, be on the lookout or be careful
In this reading “She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.”
In this reading “It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.”
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 An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
plural of “acquaintance” — personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading STRANGE ACQUAINTANCES.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
terminate
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
characterized by great determination
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
-ing form of “expect” — regard something as probable or likely
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
a woman host
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
in accordance with nature; relating to or concerning nature
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
weighing heavily on the senses or spirit
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
plural of “person” — a human being
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
Identical; not different.
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
unusual or striking
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading STRANGE ACQUAINTANCES.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading It did not seem natural for two persons to be in the same room so long without speaking a word.
German conductor (1876-1962)
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading At length Walter determined to break the silence, which had become oppressive.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading She went to the window from time to time, and looked out as if expecting some one.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading An hour passed without a word being spoken by his singular hostess.
Chapter 28 of Strong and Steady by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 139 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 holds 139 sentences of Strong and Steady, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 28 of Strong and Steady by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 139 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 28 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 Strong and Steady by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4443 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55098 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55098, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 370 minutes of reading across 889 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Strong and Steady section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 37 chapters of Strong and Steady 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 Strong and Steady, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
