Chapter 3 of The Back of Our Heads is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Back of Our Heads is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Correct. And it's incredible the way you get around. You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you." "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat. Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
Chapter 3 of The Back of Our Heads is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
nocturnal mouselike mammal with forelimbs modified to form membranous wings and anatomical adaptations for echolocation by which they navigate
From this reading “"They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.”
knock against with force or violence
From this reading “You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."”
make right or correct
From this reading “"Correct.”
plural of “echo” — the repetition of a sound resulting from reflection of the sound waves
From this reading “"They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.”
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading “"They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.”
beyond belief or understanding
From this reading “And it's incredible the way you get around.”
something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted
From this reading “"They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.”
as yourself
From this reading “Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.”
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.
collide violently with an obstacle
In this reading “You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."”
at or in the front
In this reading “Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.”
In this reading “"They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.”
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 "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
any thing at all
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
nocturnal mouselike mammal with forelimbs modified to form membranous wings and anatomical adaptations for echolocation by which they navigate
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
knock against with force or violence
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
make right or correct
From this reading "Correct.
plural of “echo” — the repetition of a sound resulting from reflection of the sound waves
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
the organ of sight
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
beyond belief or understanding
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
as yourself
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
precisely, exactly
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
express in words
From this reading "They say it's hearing faint echoes from an obstacle--like a bat.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Personally, I _feel_ the wall in front of me.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
at the time that
From this reading You never bump into anything, and you look people right in the eye when they talk to you."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading And it's incredible the way you get around.
Chapter 3 of The Back of Our Heads by Stephen Barr holds 437 sentences, grouped into 88 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 3 holds 437 sentences of The Back of Our Heads, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Back of Our Heads by Stephen Barr exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 437 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 3 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 Back of Our Heads by Stephen Barr on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1327 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51823 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51823, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 110 minutes of reading across 266 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Back of Our Heads section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of The Back of Our Heads 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 Back of Our Heads, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
