Chapter 10 of The Big Four is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of The Big Four is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Eventually we got in. It was plain that some one had been before us. The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor. Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste. Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
Chapter 10 of The Big Four is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
(usually plural) everything that is included in a collection and that is held or included in something
From this reading “The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.”
plural of “cupboard” — a small room (or recess) or cabinet used for storage space
From this reading “The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.”
underpants worn by men
From this reading “The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.”
after an unspecified period of time or an especially long delay
From this reading “Eventually we got in.”
plural of “lock” — a fastener fitted to a door or drawer to keep it firmly closed
From this reading “Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.”
inflected form of “overthrow” — cause the downfall of; of rulers
From this reading “Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.”
inflected form of “strew” — spread by scattering ("straw" is archaic)
From this reading “The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.”
plural of “table” — a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading “Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.”
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.
In this reading “Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.”
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.
(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 The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
(usually plural) everything that is included in a collection and that is held or included in something
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
plural of “cupboard” — a small room (or recess) or cabinet used for storage space
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
underpants worn by men
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
divisible by two
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
after an unspecified period of time or an especially long delay
From this reading Eventually we got in.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
produced by or subjected to forcing
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading Eventually we got in.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
overly eager speed (and possible carelessness)
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
pursue for food or sport (as of wild animals)
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Eventually we got in.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
plural of “lock” — a fastener fitted to a door or drawer to keep it firmly closed
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
above and across; more than
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
inflected form of “overthrow” — cause the downfall of; of rulers
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
inflected form of “strew” — spread by scattering ("straw" is archaic)
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
plural of “table” — a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Poirot began to hunt through the débris.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
acting with or marked by or resulting from great force or energy or emotional intensity
From this reading Locks had been forced, and small tables had even been overthrown, so violent had been the searcher's haste.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was plain that some one had been before us.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Eventually we got in.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The contents of drawers and cupboards were strewn all over the floor.
Chapter 10 of The Big Four by Agatha Christie holds 415 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 10 holds 415 sentences of The Big Four, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of The Big Four by Agatha Christie exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 415 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 10 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.
