Chapter 21 of The Bat is here in full — 218 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of The Bat is here in full — 218 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Never in the world.” Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room. “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally. “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?” Bailey considered the question.
Chapter 21 of The Bat is here in full — 218 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.
United States singer (1918-1990)
From this reading “Bailey considered the question.”
carefully weighed
From this reading “Bailey considered the question.”
to a great depth psychologically or emotionally
From this reading “Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.”
wrongfully emptied or stripped of anything of value
From this reading ““Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?””
gradual improvement or growth or development
From this reading “Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.”
a quantity of money
From this reading ““Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?””
having intellectual depth
From this reading “Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.”
an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer
From this reading ““Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?””
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.
remove from a certain place, environment, or mental or emotional state; transport into a new location or state
In this reading ““Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?””
In this reading “Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.”
In this reading ““Never in the world.””
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 Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
United States singer (1918-1990)
From this reading Bailey considered the question.
sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
inflected form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
carefully weighed
From this reading Bailey considered the question.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
to a great depth psychologically or emotionally
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
after an unspecified period of time or an especially long delay
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
recently made, produced, or harvested
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Never in the world.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
wrongfully emptied or stripped of anything of value
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “Never in the world.”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
a small pouch inside a garment for carrying small articles
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
gradual improvement or growth or development
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading Bailey considered the question.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
a quantity of money
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Never in the world.”
having intellectual depth
From this reading Saying nothing, but deeply thoughtful, Miss Cornelia made a fresh progress around the room.
an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
precisely as stated
From this reading “I know very little about bank-currency,” she said finally.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Could such a sum as was looted from the Union Bank be carried away in a man’s pocket?”
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “Never in the world.”
Chapter 21 of The Bat by Stephen Vincent Benét holds 218 sentences, grouped into 44 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 21 holds 218 sentences of The Bat, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of The Bat by Stephen Vincent Benét exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 218 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 21 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 Bat by Stephen Vincent Benét on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4997 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2019 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2019, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 416 minutes of reading across 1000 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Bat section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Bat 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 Bat, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
