Chapter 8 of The Black Dog, and Other Stories is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Black Dog, and Other Stories is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“He seems fond of you.” “I have known him some time. Yes, I like him. Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins. The cousins both thought he was splendid.
Chapter 8 of The Black Dog, and Other Stories is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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 “cousin” — the child of your aunt or uncle
From this reading “Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.”
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading ““He seems fond of you.””
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading “Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.”
apprehended with certainty
From this reading ““I have known him some time.”
someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading “Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.”
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading ““He seems fond of you.””
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading “The cousins both thought he was splendid.”
the act of changing or reversing the direction of the course
From this reading “Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.”
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 ““I have known him some time.”
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.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
the two together, not just one
From this reading The cousins both thought he was splendid.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
plural of “cousin” — the child of your aunt or uncle
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading “He seems fond of you.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I have known him some time.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “He seems fond of you.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I have known him some time.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I have known him some time.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading “I have known him some time.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Yes, I like him.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “He seems fond of you.”
someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “He seems fond of you.”
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading “I have known him some time.
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading The cousins both thought he was splendid.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The cousins both thought he was splendid.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading The cousins both thought he was splendid.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading “I have known him some time.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
the act of changing or reversing the direction of the course
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Don’t you like my pirate king?” asked Claire, turning to her two cousins.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The cousins both thought he was splendid.
an affirmative
From this reading Yes, I like him.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “He seems fond of you.”
Chapter 8 of The Black Dog, and Other Stories by A. E. (Alfred Edgar) Coppard holds 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 398 sentences of The Black Dog, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Black Dog, and Other Stories by A. E. (Alfred Edgar) Coppard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 Black Dog, and Other Stories by A. E. (Alfred Edgar) Coppard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4452 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #61016 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #61016, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 371 minutes of reading across 891 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Black Dog, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of The Black Dog, and Other Stories 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 Black Dog, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
