Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 757 sentences across 152 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 757 sentences across 152 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham. I want my report clean. The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed. I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room. One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 757 sentences across 152 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 127/151 · 5 reading units · Lines 631–635
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.
black-and-white North American wood warbler having an orange-and-black head and throat
From this reading “I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.”
free from dirt or impurities; or having clean habits
From this reading “I want my report clean.”
a public official who investigates by inquest any death not due to natural causes
From this reading “The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.”
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “"No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.”
United States evangelical preacher famous as a mass evangelist (born in 1918)
From this reading “"No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.”
to give an account or representation of in words
From this reading “I want my report clean.”
a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading “One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.”
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading “One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.”
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 One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
black-and-white North American wood warbler having an orange-and-black head and throat
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
free from dirt or impurities; or having clean habits
From this reading I want my report clean.
a public official who investigates by inquest any death not due to natural causes
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
United States evangelical preacher famous as a mass evangelist (born in 1918)
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I want my report clean.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
past form of “kill” — cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I want my report clean.
not any; not one
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
located or moved above the surround or above the normal position
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
to give an account or representation of in words
From this reading I want my report clean.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
express in words
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
the act of using
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading I want my report clean.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading The coroner will tell us how the old man was killed.
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading One of the windows was raised a trifle, but that's no use.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "No good detective would ask that, Mr. Graham.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading I want to tell how young Blackburn got into that room.
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room by Wadsworth Camp holds 757 sentences, grouped into 152 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 1 holds 757 sentences of The Abandoned Room, unabridged, divided into 152 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room by Wadsworth Camp exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 757 sentences, grouped into 152 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 152 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 152 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 1 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 The Abandoned Room by Wadsworth Camp on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6703 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10869 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10869, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 558 minutes of reading across 1341 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Abandoned Room section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Abandoned Room 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 The Abandoned Room, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
