Chapter 4 of The best short stories of 1917, and is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The best short stories of 1917, and is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You mean--?" asked Burnaby. "Exactly." Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness. "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth. Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
Chapter 4 of The best short stories of 1917, and is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
in a relative manner; by comparison to something else
From this reading “Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!”
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading “Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.”
a positive feeling of wanting to push ahead with something
From this reading “Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.”
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading “"Exactly."”
located inward
From this reading “"He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.”
free from danger or the risk of harm
From this reading “Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!”
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading “"He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.”
believed likely
From this reading “"He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.”
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 Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "You mean--?" asked Burnaby.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You mean--?" asked Burnaby.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
definite but not specified or identified
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
in a relative manner; by comparison to something else
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
a positive feeling of wanting to push ahead with something
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading "Exactly."
apart from; not including
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
located inward
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "You mean--?" asked Burnaby.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
not one, and not any
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
and nothing more
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
free from danger or the risk of harm
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
term of address for a man
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
believed likely
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
a fact that has been verified
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Of course, he was comparatively safe, none of them knew him well except myself, but think of it!
which person or people
From this reading "He sat up before all those people and told the inner secrets of his life; and of them all I was the only one who suspected the truth.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Sir John spoke with a certain cool eagerness.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You mean--?" asked Burnaby.
Chapter 4 of The best short stories of 1917, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien holds 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 444 sentences of The best short stories of 1917, and, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The best short stories of 1917, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 best short stories of 1917, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 18263 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20872 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #20872, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3653 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The best short stories of 1917, and section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The best short stories of 1917, and 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 best short stories of 1917, and, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
