Chapter 4 of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm. "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him." "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise. "No," answered Luke. "It seems very singular.
Chapter 4 of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/24 · 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.
a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading “LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.”
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading “LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.”
(New Testament) the Apostle closely associated with St. Paul and traditionally assumed to be the author of the third Gospel
From this reading “LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.”
third-person singular of “receive” — get something; come into possession of
From this reading “LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.”
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “"It seems very singular.”
unusual or striking
From this reading “"It seems very singular.”
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading “"Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.”
a silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide
From this reading “LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.”
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 "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "No," answered Luke.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
(New Testament) the Apostle closely associated with St. Paul and traditionally assumed to be the author of the third Gospel
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
not any; not one
From this reading "No," answered Luke.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
third-person singular of “receive” — get something; come into possession of
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading "It seems very singular.
unusual or striking
From this reading "It seems very singular.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading "Do you know the man?" asked his mother, in surprise.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
in or at that place or location
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
a silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
precisely as stated
From this reading "It seems very singular.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
which person or people
From this reading "I met a man on my way home, who asked me to keep it for him."
in the company of; together with
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading LUKE RECEIVES AN INVITATION "What have you there, Luke?" asked Mrs. Larkin, as Luke entered the little sitting-room with the tin box under his arm.
Chapter 4 of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 122 sentences, grouped into 25 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 4 holds 122 sentences of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 122 sentences, grouped into 25 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 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 25 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 4 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #5417, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 337 minutes of reading across 811 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Choose one of the 39 chapters of Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck to begin.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Struggling Upward, or Luke Larkin's Luck, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
