Chapter 4 of The Backwoods Boy is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Backwoods Boy is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ABE’S SCHOOLING. “Spell _defied_!” This question was put a class in spelling by the master. The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.” The master frowned.
Chapter 4 of The Backwoods Boy is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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 remote and undeveloped area
From this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
inflected form of “defy” — resist or confront with resistance
From this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
past form of “frown” — look angry or sullen, wrinkle one's forehead, as if to signal disapproval
From this reading “The master frowned.”
indecision in speech or action
From this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution
From this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
the act of teaching at school
From this reading “ABE’S SCHOOLING.”
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading ““Spell _defied_!””
forming words with letters according to the principles underlying accepted usage
From this reading “This question was put a class in spelling by the master.”
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 “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
In this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
In this reading “The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.””
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 This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ABE’S SCHOOLING.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
a remote and undeveloped area
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
showing who or what does the action
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
a collection of things sharing a common attribute
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
inflected form of “defy” — resist or confront with resistance
From this reading “Spell _defied_!”
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
past form of “frown” — look angry or sullen, wrinkle one's forehead, as if to signal disapproval
From this reading The master frowned.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
indecision in speech or action
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
an artist of consummate skill
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
the act of teaching at school
From this reading ABE’S SCHOOLING.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading “Spell _defied_!”
forming words with letters according to the principles underlying accepted usage
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
spreading out in different directions or distributed irregularly
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This question was put a class in spelling by the master.
which person or people
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading The first pupil in the straggling line of backwoods boys and girls who stood up in class, answered with some hesitation: “D-e-f-i-d-e, defied.”
Chapter 4 of The Backwoods Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 93 sentences, grouped into 19 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 4 holds 93 sentences of The Backwoods Boy, unabridged, divided into 19 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Backwoods Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 93 sentences, grouped into 19 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 19 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 19 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 4 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 Backwoods Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2652 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52073 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52073, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 221 minutes of reading across 531 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Backwoods Boy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of The Backwoods Boy 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 Backwoods Boy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
