Chapter 5 of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Come up closer and watch the throw. No? Afraid of the oar? You sneaking coward! You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
Chapter 5 of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading “"Come up closer and watch the throw.”
a person who shows fear or timidity
From this reading “You sneaking coward!”
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading “You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.”
an implement used to propel or steer a boat
From this reading “Afraid of the oar?”
any of numerous elongate mostly marine carnivorous fishes with heterocercal caudal fins and tough skin covered with small toothlike scales
From this reading “You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.”
the bony skeleton of the head of vertebrates
From this reading “You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.”
not openly expressed
From this reading “You sneaking coward!”
separate into parts or portions
From this reading “You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.”
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 You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading Afraid of the oar?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
a person who shows fear or timidity
From this reading You sneaking coward!
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
immediately past
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
not any; not one
From this reading No?
an implement used to propel or steer a boat
From this reading Afraid of the oar?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Afraid of the oar?
any of numerous elongate mostly marine carnivorous fishes with heterocercal caudal fins and tough skin covered with small toothlike scales
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
the bony skeleton of the head of vertebrates
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
not openly expressed
From this reading You sneaking coward!
separate into parts or portions
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
propel through the air
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
look attentively
From this reading "Come up closer and watch the throw.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You sneaking coward!
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You would be a decent shark at last did the oar but split your skull.
Chapter 5 of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People by W. C. Morrow holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 5 holds 404 sentences of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People by W. C. Morrow exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 5 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 Ape, the Idiot & Other People by W. C. Morrow on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3198 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21616 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21616, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 266 minutes of reading across 640 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Ape, the Idiot & Other People section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The Ape, the Idiot & Other People 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 Ape, the Idiot & Other People, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
