Chapter 28 of The Big-Town Round-Up is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVIII
Chapter 28 of The Big-Town Round-Up is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper. His step was hurried, his eyes eager. When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice. "Bee, I've got bad news." "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
Chapter 28 of The Big-Town Round-Up is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading “"Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.”
any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
From this reading “"Bee, I've got bad news."”
an enclosure made or wire or metal bars in which birds or animals can be kept
From this reading “"Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.”
-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading “BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.”
having or showing keen interest or intense desire or impatient expectancy
From this reading “His step was hurried, his eyes eager.”
covered with water
From this reading “"Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.”
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading “His step was hurried, his eyes eager.”
raise from a lower to a higher position
From this reading “When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.”
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 BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
From this reading "Bee, I've got bad news."
warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
an enclosure made or wire or metal bars in which birds or animals can be kept
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
having or showing keen interest or intense desire or impatient expectancy
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
opinion or judgment
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
covered with water
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Bee, I've got bad news."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Bee, I've got bad news."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice.
raise from a lower to a higher position
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
information about recent and important events
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
in or at that place or location
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His step was hurried, his eyes eager.
at the time that
From this reading When he spoke there was the lift of excitement in his voice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BAD NEWS Colin Whitford came into the room carrying a morning paper.
Chapter 28 of The Big-Town Round-Up by William MacLeod Raine holds 159 sentences, grouped into 32 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 28 holds 159 sentences of The Big-Town Round-Up, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 28 of The Big-Town Round-Up by William MacLeod Raine exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 159 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 28 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.
