Chapter 8 of The Big-Town Round-Up is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 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-Town Round-Up is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked. He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck. He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached. From head to foot he was sore. Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
Chapter 8 of The Big-Town Round-Up is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
past form of “ache” — feel physical pain
From this reading “He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.”
past form of “creak” — make a high-pitched, screeching noise
From this reading “"THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.”
showing lack of emotional involvement
From this reading “Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.”
comparative of “iv” — being one more than three
From this reading “"THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.”
machines or machine systems collectively
From this reading “"THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.”
one of the contractile organs of the body
From this reading “He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.”
the relation of an owner to the thing possessed; possession with the right to transfer possession to others
From this reading “Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.”
causing great physical or mental suffering
From this reading “He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.”
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 "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
past form of “ache” — feel physical pain
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
a very fine-grained soil that is plastic when moist but hard when fired
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
past form of “creak” — make a high-pitched, screeching noise
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
showing lack of emotional involvement
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
past form of “drift” — be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
past form of “float” — be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading From head to foot he was sore.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading From head to foot he was sore.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
comparative of “iv” — being one more than three
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
a human limb; commonly used to refer to a whole limb but technically only the part of the limb between the knee and ankle
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
machines or machine systems collectively
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
one of the contractile organs of the body
From this reading He moved a leg, and every muscle in it ached.
the part of an organism (human or animal) that connects the head to the rest of the body
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
the relation of an owner to the thing possessed; possession with the right to transfer possession to others
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
concerning or affecting a particular person or his or her private life and personality
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
causing great physical or mental suffering
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
having one barrel
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
in or at or to some place
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
hurting
From this reading From head to foot he was sore.
the unlimited expanse in which everything is located
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading He turned his head, and a racking pain shot down his neck.
in a vague way
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
plural of “voice” — the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Voices somewhere in space, detached from any personal ownership, floated vaguely to him.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading From head to foot he was sore.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading "THE BEST SINGLE-BARRELED SPORT IVER I MET" Clay drifted back to a world in which the machinery of his body creaked.
Chapter 8 of The Big-Town Round-Up by William MacLeod Raine holds 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 104 sentences of The Big-Town Round-Up, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Big-Town Round-Up by William MacLeod Raine exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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-Town Round-Up by William MacLeod Raine on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6449 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17205 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17205, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 537 minutes of reading across 1290 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Big-Town Round-Up section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Big-Town Round-Up 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-Town Round-Up, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
