Chapter 14 of The Bells of San Juan is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of The Bells of San Juan is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please." The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair. "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away. May I watch you while you read?" Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
Chapter 14 of The Bells of San Juan is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
the entrance (the space in a wall) through which you enter or leave a room or building; the space that a door can close
From this reading “The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.”
something regarded with special favor or liking
From this reading “The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.”
a fixed charge for a privilege or for professional services
From this reading “"I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.”
someone in charge of other people
From this reading “"I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.”
hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading “Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.”
the principal law-enforcement officer in a county
From this reading “The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.”
a porch along the outside of a building (sometimes partly enclosed)
From this reading “The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.”
a state in the eastern United States; one of the original 13 colonies; one of the Confederate States in the American Civil War
From this reading “Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.”
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 A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
the entrance (the space in a wall) through which you enter or leave a room or building; the space that a door can close
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
something regarded with special favor or liking
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
a fixed charge for a privilege or for professional services
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
someone in charge of other people
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading May I watch you while you read?"
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading May I watch you while you read?"
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
100 senti equal 1 kroon in Estonia
From this reading "I have given my keeper his fee and sent him away.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
the principal law-enforcement officer in a county
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
a porch along the outside of a building (sometimes partly enclosed)
From this reading The sheriff stood in the hotel doorway, looking down upon her as she sat in her favorite veranda chair.
a state in the eastern United States; one of the original 13 colonies; one of the Confederate States in the American Civil War
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
look attentively
From this reading May I watch you while you read?"
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
accept gladly
From this reading Virginia closed her book upon her knee and gave him a smile by way of welcome.
during the time that
From this reading May I watch you while you read?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading A FREE MAN "I am a free man, if you please."
Chapter 14 of The Bells of San Juan by Jackson Gregory holds 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 14 holds 201 sentences of The Bells of San Juan, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of The Bells of San Juan by Jackson Gregory exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 14 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 Bells of San Juan by Jackson Gregory on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5043 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #15438 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #15438, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 420 minutes of reading across 1009 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Bells of San Juan section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Bells of San Juan 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 Bells of San Juan, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
