Chapter 33 of The Black Opal is here in full — 175 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIII
Chapter 33 of The Black Opal is here in full — 175 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there. "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened." Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said. It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening. "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
Chapter 33 of The Black Opal is here in full — 175 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
elected vice president and became 21st President of the United States when Garfield was assassinated (1830-1886)
From this reading “"While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.”
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading “"Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."”
come to pass
From this reading “It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.”
temporary military shelter
From this reading “When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.”
(Old Testament) the guardian archangel of the Jews
From this reading “When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.”
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading “It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.”
(usually followed by “to”) not having the necessary means or skill or know-how
From this reading “Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.”
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 “Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.”
In this reading “"Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."”
recover something or somebody that appeared to be lost
In this reading “When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.”
In this reading “"While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.”
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 "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
(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 It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
elected vice president and became 21st President of the United States when Garfield was assassinated (1830-1886)
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
set up or found
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
come to pass
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
temporary military shelter
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
(Old Testament) the guardian archangel of the Jews
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
in or at that place or location
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
a special situation
From this reading "Oh, Michael," she said, "a dreadful thing has happened."
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading It seemed to him all the terrible things that could happen had happened that evening.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
(usually followed by “to”) not having the necessary means or skill or know-how
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Michael stared at her, unable to understand what she said.
at the time that
From this reading When Michael got back to his hut he found Martha there.
during the time that
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "While you were away Arthur Henty came here to see Sophie," Martha said.
Chapter 33 of The Black Opal by Katharine Susannah Prichard holds 175 sentences, grouped into 35 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 33 holds 175 sentences of The Black Opal, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 33 of The Black Opal by Katharine Susannah Prichard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 175 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 33 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 Opal by Katharine Susannah Prichard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6229 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36710 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36710, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 519 minutes of reading across 1246 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Black Opal section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Black Opal 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 Opal, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
