Chapter 8 of Tarka the otter is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Tarka the otter is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He waited and listened. The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating. The noise of the saw ceased. He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat. A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
Chapter 8 of Tarka the otter is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
gymnastic apparatus consisting of two parallel wooden rods supported on uprights
From this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
past form of “cease” — put an end to a state or an activity
From this reading “The noise of the saw ceased.”
past form of “drift” — be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
a barrier that has parallel or crossed bars blocking a passage but admitting air
From this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
plural of “hound” — any of several breeds of dog used for hunting typically having large drooping ears
From this reading “He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.”
according to the clock
From this reading “A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.”
fine particles of wood made by sawing wood
From this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
past form of “suck” — draw into the mouth by creating a practical vacuum in the mouth
From this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
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 “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
In this reading “The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.”
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 A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
anew
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He waited and listened.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
gymnastic apparatus consisting of two parallel wooden rods supported on uprights
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
past form of “cease” — put an end to a state or an activity
From this reading The noise of the saw ceased.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
past form of “drift” — be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
a barrier that has parallel or crossed bars blocking a passage but admitting air
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He waited and listened.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
plural of “hound” — any of several breeds of dog used for hunting typically having large drooping ears
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
a heavy ductile magnetic metallic element; is silver-white in pure form but readily rusts; used in construction and tools and armament; plays a role in the transport of oxygen by the blood
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
and nothing more
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He heard the hounds again, coming down the leat.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading He waited and listened.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading The noise of the saw ceased.
according to the clock
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
above and across; more than
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
the time that has elapsed
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
cut with a saw
From this reading The noise of the saw ceased.
fine particles of wood made by sawing wood
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
past form of “suck” — draw into the mouth by creating a practical vacuum in the mouth
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading A voice just over his head cried, _One o'clock!_ Footfalls hurried away from the saw.
past form of “wait” — stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading He waited and listened.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The sawdust drifted past him, and was sucked away between the iron bars of the grating.
Chapter 8 of Tarka the otter by Henry Williamson holds 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 8 holds 424 sentences of Tarka the otter, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Tarka the otter by Henry Williamson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 8 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 Tarka the otter by Henry Williamson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3430 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #75899 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #75899, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 285 minutes of reading across 686 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tarka the otter section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Tarka the otter 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 Tarka the otter, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
