Chapter 8 of The Air Patrol is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Air Patrol is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them. They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again. I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry. Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night. It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
Chapter 8 of The Air Patrol is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
only a very short time before
From this reading “It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."”
a whole formed by a union of two or more elements or parts
From this reading “They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.”
being one more than seven
From this reading “It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."”
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading “I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.”
according to the clock
-ing form of “rock” — move back and forth or sideways
From this reading “Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of eleven and one
From this reading “It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."”
a specific feeling of desire
From this reading “I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.”
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 “It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."”
get involved in or with
In this reading “They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.”
move out of or depart from
In this reading “They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.”
In this reading “"We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.”
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 I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
anew
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
(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 It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
only a very short time before
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
a youthful male person
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
a whole formed by a union of two or more elements or parts
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
act on verbally or in some form of artistic expression
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
being one more than seven
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
a group of Niger-Congo languages spoken primarily in southeastern Mali and northern Ghana
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
go away from a place
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
not one and not the other of two
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
according to the clock
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
-ing form of “rock” — move back and forth or sideways
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They can’t get into the compound; if they did they’d never get out again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
the cardinal number that is the sum of eleven and one
From this reading It’s barely eight o’clock: we ought to get a good twelve hours, and I can do with it all."
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
a specific feeling of desire
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "We can leave Gur Buksh to deal with them.
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading I shouldn’t wonder if they’re wishing they hadn’t been in quite such a hurry.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Now, my boy, bed: neither you nor I will need any rocking to-night.
Chapter 8 of The Air Patrol by Herbert Strang holds 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 8 holds 414 sentences of The Air Patrol, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Air Patrol by Herbert Strang exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 8 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 Air Patrol by Herbert Strang on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5844 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #42417 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #42417, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 487 minutes of reading across 1169 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Air Patrol section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Air Patrol 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 Air Patrol, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
