Chapter 20 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma. "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?" I asked. "Sunshine." "You mean--?"
Chapter 20 of The Affable Stranger is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/15 · 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 prearranged meeting for consultation or exchange of information or discussion (especially one with a formal agenda)
From this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
highest in quality
From this reading “"What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"”
the act of departing
From this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
(Hinduism) term of respect for a brahmin sage
From this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “"You mean--?"”
a condition requiring relief
From this reading “"What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"”
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy
From this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
the rays of the sun
From this reading “"Sunshine."”
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 “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
In this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
In this reading “"What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"”
In this reading “MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.”
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 MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading I asked.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
a prearranged meeting for consultation or exchange of information or discussion (especially one with a formal agenda)
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
highest in quality
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
the act of departing
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
(Hinduism) term of respect for a brahmin sage
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "You mean--?"
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
have ownership or possession of
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
the rays of the sun
From this reading "Sunshine."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading MY PRIVATE MAHATMA Before leaving home I had a conference with my own private Mahatma.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading "What is the greatest need of the world to-day?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You mean--?"
Chapter 20 of The Affable Stranger by Peter McArthur holds 76 sentences, grouped into 16 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 20 holds 76 sentences of The Affable Stranger, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Affable Stranger by Peter McArthur exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 76 sentences, grouped into 16 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 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 16 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 20 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.
