Chapter 9 of The best short stories of 1920, and is here in full — 503 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The best short stories of 1920, and is here in full — 503 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward. 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help. The thing was up to me alone!'" Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten. "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
Chapter 9 of The best short stories of 1920, and is here in full — 503 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/100 · 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.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading “"'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.”
using the voice; not silently
From this reading “"Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.”
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading “"Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.”
of a dreadful kind
From this reading “"'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.”
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading “"'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.”
the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities
From this reading “'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.”
in large part; mainly or chiefly
From this reading “"Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.”
any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)
From this reading “Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.”
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 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
Having no one else present.
From this reading The thing was up to me alone!'"
using the voice; not silently
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
descend in free fall under the influence of gravity
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
of a dreadful kind
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
in large part; mainly or chiefly
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
in or at that place or location
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
a special situation
From this reading The thing was up to me alone!'"
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "Mostly they fight alone," she said, as if she thought aloud.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The thing was up to me alone!'"
any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs. Trask looked from Mrs. Bullen to Mrs. Van Vechten.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "'I was horribly afraid I'd fall down on the job,' he told me long afterward.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'And there wasn't a living soul I could turn to for help.
Chapter 9 of The best short stories of 1920, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien holds 503 sentences, grouped into 101 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 9 holds 503 sentences of The best short stories of 1920, and, unabridged, divided into 101 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The best short stories of 1920, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 503 sentences, grouped into 101 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 101 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 101 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 9 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 1920, and by Edward J. (Edward Joseph) [Editor] O'Brien on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 19297 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #22091 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #22091, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3860 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The best short stories of 1920, and section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The best short stories of 1920, 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 1920, and, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
