Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 775 sentences across 155 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 — 775 sentences across 155 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Seemed you were here all the time. That's a good one on me--a very good one." The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house. He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him. The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 775 sentences across 155 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 144/155 · 5 reading units · Lines 716–720
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.
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading “The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.”
possessive form of “bobby” — an informal term for a British policeman
From this reading “The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.”
forsaken by owner or inhabitants
From this reading “The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.”
A large hole in the ground, or an abyss of darkness and peril.
From this reading “The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.”
strongly marked; easily noticeable
From this reading “The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.”
wither, as with a loss of moisture
From this reading “He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.”
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading “He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.”
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading “He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.”
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 That's a good one on me--a very good one."
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
react verbally
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
possessive form of “bobby” — an informal term for a British policeman
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
forsaken by owner or inhabitants
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
immediately past
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
A large hole in the ground, or an abyss of darkness and peril.
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
strongly marked; easily noticeable
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
wither, as with a loss of moisture
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The answer lay in that black pit of last night and this morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
precisely as stated
From this reading That's a good one on me--a very good one."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The beating of Bobby's heart was more pronounced than it had been in the deserted house.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
which person or people
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading He asked himself why he should shrink from this stranger who had an air of threatening him.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Seemed you were here all the time.
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room by Wadsworth Camp holds 775 sentences, grouped into 155 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 775 sentences of The Abandoned Room, unabridged, divided into 155 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 775 sentences, grouped into 155 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 155 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 155 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
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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.
