Chapter 8 of The Big Four is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Big Four is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"They've let us alone, anyway," I observed. "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind." "No," said Poirot thoughtfully. "On the whole, that rather surprises me. Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
Chapter 8 of The Big Four is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
plural of “ambush” — the act of concealing yourself and lying in wait to attack by surprise
From this reading “"There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."”
used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement
From this reading “"They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.”
plural of “attempt” — earnest and conscientious activity intended to do or accomplish something
From this reading “"There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."”
to certain extent or degree
From this reading “Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.”
easily perceived by the senses or grasped by the mind
From this reading “Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.”
inflected form of “occur” — come to pass
From this reading “Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.”
plural of “surprise” — the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading “"On the whole, that rather surprises me.”
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading “"No," said Poirot thoughtfully.”
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.
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.
Having no one else present.
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
plural of “ambush” — the act of concealing yourself and lying in wait to attack by surprise
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
plural of “attempt” — earnest and conscientious activity intended to do or accomplish something
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
the past participle of “be”
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
definite but not specified or identified
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
to a distinctly greater extent or degree than is common
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
to certain extent or degree
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
not any; not one
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
easily perceived by the senses or grasped by the mind
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
inflected form of “occur” — come to pass
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "No," said Poirot thoughtfully.
on the contrary
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "No," said Poirot thoughtfully.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
plural of “surprise” — the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading "No," said Poirot thoughtfully.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "They've let us alone, anyway," I observed.
structure consisting of a sloping way down to the water from the place where ships are built or repaired
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Especially as there are one or two fairly obvious ways of getting at us which I should have thought certain to have occurred to them.
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading "On the whole, that rather surprises me.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "There have been no more attempts on your life, and no ambushes of any kind."
Chapter 8 of The Big Four by Agatha Christie holds 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 8 holds 412 sentences of The Big Four, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Big Four by Agatha Christie exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 8 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 Big Four by Agatha Christie on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Big Four section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Big Four 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 Big Four, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
