Chapter 17 of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan." Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning. "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily. "I wonder whether we have missed reveille." "What's that?"
Chapter 17 of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
English navigator who explored the Arctic while searching for the Northwest Passage (1550-1605)
From this reading “"What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.”
a small natural hill
From this reading “Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.”
an expression of greeting
From this reading “AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."”
a small inflamed elevation of the skin; a pustule or papule; common symptom in acne
From this reading “Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.”
(military) signal to wake up
From this reading “"I wonder whether we have missed reveille."”
in a sleepy manner
From this reading “"What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.”
a reference point to shoot at
From this reading “AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."”
a professional killer who uses a gun
From this reading “AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."”
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.
practice in shooting at targets
In this reading “AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."”
In this reading “Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.”
In this reading “Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.”
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.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
English navigator who explored the Arctic while searching for the Northwest Passage (1550-1605)
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
the boundary of a surface
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
a small natural hill
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
an expression of greeting
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
a small inflamed elevation of the skin; a pustule or papule; common symptom in acne
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
not caught with the senses or the mind
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
above and across; more than
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
past form of “peer” — look searchingly
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
a customary way of operation or behavior
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
(military) signal to wake up
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
a guided missile fired from land or shipboard against an airborne target
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
in a sleepy manner
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
a reference point to shoot at
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "What's that?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Sam Hickey peered over the edge of his hammock in the early morning.
a professional killer who uses a gun
From this reading AT TORPEDO TARGET PRACTICE "Hello, Dan."
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What is it?" answered Davis sleepily.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What's that?"
used to introduce two or more possibilities
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading "I wonder whether we have missed reveille."
Chapter 17 of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward by Frank Gee Patchin holds 145 sentences, grouped into 29 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 17 holds 145 sentences of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward by Frank Gee Patchin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 145 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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 17 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 Battleship Boys' First Step Upward by Frank Gee Patchin on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3908 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #32886 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #32886, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 325 minutes of reading across 782 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of The Battleship Boys' First Step Upward 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 Battleship Boys' First Step Upward, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
