Chapter 9 of Tattered Tom is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Tattered Tom is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MRS. MERTON. “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain. “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised. “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
Chapter 9 of Tattered Tom is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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 line of approach
From this reading ““We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.”
a street in Manhattan that passes through Times Square; famous for its theaters
From this reading ““We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.”
plural of “car” — a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading ““We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.”
inflected form of “lug” — carry with difficulty
From this reading ““Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.””
United States religious and writer (1915-1968)
From this reading “MERTON.”
sit and travel on the back of animal, usually while controlling its motions
From this reading ““Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.”
coming next after the fifteenth in position
From this reading ““Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.””
coming next after the fifth and just before the seventh in position
From this reading ““We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.”
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 ““We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.”
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 “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
a line of approach
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
a street in Manhattan that passes through Times Square; famous for its theaters
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
plural of “car” — a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
inflected form of “lug” — carry with difficulty
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
United States religious and writer (1915-1968)
From this reading MERTON.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading MRS.
sit and travel on the back of animal, usually while controlling its motions
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
coming next after the fifteenth in position
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
coming next after the fifth and just before the seventh in position
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
carry out
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
male cat
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “Are we goin’ to ride?” asked Tom, surprised.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We’ll go across Broadway, and take the Sixth Avenue cars, Tom,” said the captain.
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Yes, you don’t catch me lugging this heavy carpet-bag up to Sixteenth Street.”
Chapter 9 of Tattered Tom by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 9 holds 202 sentences of Tattered Tom, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Tattered Tom by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 9 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 Tattered Tom by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3613 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #54006 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #54006, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 301 minutes of reading across 723 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tattered Tom section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of Tattered Tom 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 Tattered Tom, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
