Chapter 10 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 61 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 61 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers. A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk. Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership." That sounded familiar. It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
Chapter 10 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 61 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/12 · 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.
plural of “acquaintance” — personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
plural of “activity” — any specific behavior
From this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
past form of “contribute” — bestow a quality on
From this reading “Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."”
-ing form of “discuss” — to consider or examine in speech or writing
From this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
found in the ordinary course of events
From this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
the activity of leading
From this reading “Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."”
formed into a structured or coherent whole, particularly on a large scale
From this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
fire iron consisting of a metal rod with a handle; used to stir a fire
From this reading “A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.”
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 “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
In this reading “ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.”
In this reading “Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."”
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 ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
plural of “acquaintance” — personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
plural of “activity” — any specific behavior
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
past form of “contribute” — bestow a quality on
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
a pair who associate with one another
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
every day; without missing a day
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
-ing form of “discuss” — to consider or examine in speech or writing
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
found in the ordinary course of events
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
well known or easily recognized
From this reading That sounded familiar.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
the act of departing
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
any place of pain and turmoil
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
the activity of leading
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
the act of hearing attentively
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
inflected form of “occur” — come to pass
From this reading It occurred to me that I had heard the remark before.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
formed into a structured or coherent whole, particularly on a large scale
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
fire iron consisting of a metal rod with a handle; used to stir a fire
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
the excess of revenues over outlays in a given period of time (including depreciation and other non-cash expenses)
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
a statement that expresses a personal opinion or belief or adds information
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
made known or told about; especially presented in a formal account
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
past form of “sound” — appear in a certain way
From this reading That sounded familiar.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That sounded familiar.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Suddenly he contributed a remark: "This country is going to hell for lack of leadership."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A quiet man with a poker face was listening to our talk.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
in the company of; together with
From this reading ORGANIZED FOR PROFIT With a couple of chance acquaintances I was discussing everyday activities as reported in the daily papers.
Chapter 10 of The Affable Stranger by Peter McArthur holds 61 sentences, grouped into 13 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 10 holds 61 sentences of The Affable Stranger, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of The Affable Stranger by Peter McArthur exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 61 sentences, grouped into 13 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 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 13 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 10 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 Affable Stranger by Peter McArthur on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1811 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #48128 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #48128, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 150 minutes of reading across 363 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Affable Stranger section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Affable Stranger 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 Affable Stranger, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
