Chapter 25 of The Auction Block is here in full — 217 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of The Auction Block is here in full — 217 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle. The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance: "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?" "Why, of course." Merkle nodded reflectively.
Chapter 25 of The Auction Block is here in full — 217 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/43 · 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.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading “The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:”
take a court case to a higher court for review
From this reading “There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.”
a financier who owns or is an executive in a bank
From this reading “The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:”
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading “There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.”
possessive form of “bob” — a former monetary unit in Great Britain
From this reading “The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:”
the lack of a relation of something to the matter at hand
From this reading “The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:”
a Siren of German legend who lured boatmen in the Rhine to destruction
From this reading “"You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"”
the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events
From this reading “The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
take a court case to a higher court for review
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
a financier who owns or is an executive in a bank
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
possessive form of “bob” — a former monetary unit in Great Britain
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading "Why, of course."
past form of “dare” — take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
the lack of a relation of something to the matter at hand
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
a Siren of German legend who lured boatmen in the Rhine to destruction
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading Merkle nodded reflectively.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
in a reflective manner
From this reading Merkle nodded reflectively.
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading There was but one man to whom Bob dared appeal in this unhappy situation, and that man was John Merkle.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why, of course."
in the company of; together with
From this reading The banker listened gravely to Bob's recital, then inquired with apparent irrelevance:
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You are mighty fond of Lorelei, aren't you?"
Chapter 25 of The Auction Block by Rex Beach holds 217 sentences, grouped into 44 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 25 holds 217 sentences of The Auction Block, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of The Auction Block by Rex Beach exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 217 sentences, grouped into 44 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 44 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 44 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 25 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 Auction Block by Rex Beach on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8096 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5143 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5143, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1620 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Auction Block section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of The Auction Block 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 Auction Block, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
