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.
The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass. "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?" Bobby didn't answer. He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night. He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
Chapter 1 of The Abandoned Room is here in full — 757 sentences across 152 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 73/151 · 5 reading units · Lines 361–365
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 feeling of intense dislike
From this reading “He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.”
black-and-white North American wood warbler having an orange-and-black head and throat
From this reading “He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.”
an informal term for a British policeman
From this reading “The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.”
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading “He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.”
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.”
inflected form of “fight” — be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading “He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.”
most important element
From this reading “He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.”
a movable organ for flying (one of a pair)
From this reading “He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.”
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.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
react verbally
From this reading Bobby didn't answer.
on or to one side
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
a feeling of intense dislike
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
black-and-white North American wood warbler having an orange-and-black head and throat
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
an informal term for a British policeman
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bobby didn't answer.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
inflected form of “fight” — be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
immediately past
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
most important element
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
go across or through
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The detective opened the door and stood aside to let Bobby pass.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
in or at the place that
From this reading He went along the corridor and into the main hall where Katherine had met Silas Blackburn last night.
a movable organ for flying (one of a pair)
From this reading He fought back his aversion and entered the corridor of the old wing.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Daresay you know the room--the way to it?"
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.
