Chapter 5 of The black drama is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The black drama is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal. The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk. "Thank you, Davidson." Varduk accepted the proffered fragment. "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
Chapter 5 of The black drama is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 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.
a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading “The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.”
The middle point or core of an area.
From this reading “"Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.”
A soft white limestone used for marking doors, stone walls, and slate.
From this reading “The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.”
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading “"Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.”
A small part broken or separated off something larger.
From this reading “Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.”
a short coat
From this reading “The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.”
past form of “proffer” — present for acceptance or rejection
From this reading “Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.”
inflected form of “snap” — utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading “He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.”
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 “The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.”
In this reading “He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.”
In this reading “He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.”
make visible
In this reading “The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.”
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 big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
generally approved or compelling recognition
From this reading Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
The middle point or core of an area.
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
A soft white limestone used for marking doors, stone walls, and slate.
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
a line leading to a place or point
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
plural of “finger” — any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
A small part broken or separated off something larger.
From this reading Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
a short coat
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
a separate part of a whole
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
a small pouch inside a garment for carrying small articles
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
past form of “proffer” — present for acceptance or rejection
From this reading Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
express the need or desire for
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
any nonverbal action or gesture that encodes a message
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
inflected form of “snap” — utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
be standing; be upright
From this reading "Stand a little closer center, Miss Holgar.
express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading "Thank you, Davidson."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Varduk accepted the proffered fragment.
a Caucasian
From this reading The big assistant reached into the pocket of his jacket and brought out a piece of white chalk.
which person or people
From this reading He snapped his fingers in the direction of Davidson, who seemed to have expected some sort of request signal.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Thank you, Davidson."
Chapter 5 of The black drama by Manly Wade Wellman holds 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 5 holds 410 sentences of The black drama, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The black drama by Manly Wade Wellman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 5 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 drama by Manly Wade Wellman 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 black drama section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The black drama 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 drama, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
