Chapter 18 of The best short stories of 1919, and is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The best short stories of 1919, and is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You were in love with her!" I cried. "No," he said slowly. "I might have been, but I wasn't. You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
Chapter 18 of The best short stories of 1919, and is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “I cried.”
an estimate based on little or no information
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
precisely, exactly
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading “"No," he said slowly.”
express in speech
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
a device in which something (usually an animal) can be caught and penned
From this reading “You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.”
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.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading "I might have been, but I wasn't.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "I might have been, but I wasn't.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading I cried.
an estimate based on little or no information
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I might have been, but I wasn't.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "No," he said slowly.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I cried.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading "I might have been, but I wasn't.
not any; not one
From this reading "No," he said slowly.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
and nothing more
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
precisely, exactly
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "No," he said slowly.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading "No," he said slowly.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
express in speech
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
inflected form of “spring” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
in or at that place or location
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
a device in which something (usually an animal) can be caught and penned
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I might have been, but I wasn't.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
which person or people
From this reading You are right, though, in guessing there was love in her story, only it was not I, it was Charlie Brede who, so to speak, sprang the trap.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You were in love with her!"
Chapter 18 of The best short stories of 1919, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien holds 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 18 holds 394 sentences of The best short stories of 1919, and, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The best short stories of 1919, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 18 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 1919, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 14810 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #23445 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #23445, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2962 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The best short stories of 1919, and section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of The best short stories of 1919, 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 1919, and, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
