The Boy Allies in the Trenches

Chapter XX · Chapter 20

Chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches is here in full — 123 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Clair W. (Clair Wallace) Hayes • Curated US English Learning Edition

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AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

"I have been informed," continued the Prime Minister, "that you bear a message from General Joffre containing proof of information you obtained bearing on a plot to kidnap the President of France."

"Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

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LEARNER DICTIONARY

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/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XX Reading 1/24

The Boy Allies in the Trenches

Chapter XX · Chapter 20

Chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches is here in full — 123 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/24 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

/æn ˌʌnɪkˈspektɪd ˈmiːtɪŋ/

Line 2

Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

Line 3

"I have been informed," continued the Prime Minister, "that you bear a message from General Joffre containing proof of information you obtained bearing on a plot to kidnap the President of France."

Line 4

"Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

Line 5

The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

/ðə ˈlætər broʊk ðə siːl ənd ræn θruː ɪt ˈhɜːridli/

Learner Dictionary

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.

Chester noun US /ˈtʃestər/

a city of southeastern Pennsylvania on the Delaware river (an industrial suburb of Philadelphia)

From this reading “Hal and Chester made a profound bow.”

containing verb US /kənˈteɪnɪŋ/

-ing form of “contain” — include or contain; have as a component

From this reading “"I have been informed," continued the Prime Minister, "that you bear a message from General Joffre containing proof of information you obtained bearing on a plot to kidnap the President of France."”

document noun US /ˈdɑːkjəment/

writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)

From this reading “"Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.”

hurriedly adverb US /ˈhɜːridli/

in a hurried or hasty manner

From this reading “The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.”

kidnap verb US /ˈkɪdnæp/

take away to an undisclosed location against their will and usually in order to extract a ransom

plot noun US /plɑːt/

a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)

Prime adjective US /praɪm/

first in rank or degree

seal verb US /siːl/

make tight; secure against leakage

From this reading “The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.”

All words in this reading · 54

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

ANdeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

bearverbUS /ber/

have

From this reading "I have been informed," continued the Prime Minister, "that you bear a message from General Joffre containing proof of information you obtained bearing on a plot to kidnap the President of France."

bearingnounUS /ˈberɪŋ/

relevant relation or interconnection

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

bownounUS /baʊ/

a knot with two loops and loose ends; used to tie shoelaces

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

brokeadjectiveUS /broʊk/

lacking funds

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

ChesternounUS /ˈtʃestər/

a city of southeastern Pennsylvania on the Delaware river (an industrial suburb of Philadelphia)

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

containingverbUS /kənˈteɪnɪŋ/

-ing form of “contain” — include or contain; have as a component

continuedadjectiveUS /kənˈtɪnjuːd/

without stop or interruption

documentnounUS /ˈdɑːkjəment/

writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

FrancenounUS /fræns/

a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

GeneraladjectiveUS /ˈdʒenərəl/

applying to all or most members of a category or group

Hal

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

hurriedlyadverbUS /ˈhɜːridli/

in a hurried or hasty manner

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

informationnounUS /ˌɪnfərˈmeɪʃən/

a message received and understood

informedadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈfɔːrmd/

having much knowledge or education

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

Joffrenoun

French field marshal who commanded the Allied armies in France during World War II (1852-1931)

kidnapverbUS /ˈkɪdnæp/

take away to an undisclosed location against their will and usually in order to extract a ransom

latteradjectiveUS /ˈlætər/

referring to the second of two things or persons mentioned (or the last one or ones of several)

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

madeadjectiveUS /meɪd/

produced by a manufacturing process

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

MEETINGnounUS /ˈmiːtɪŋ/

a formally arranged gathering

From this reading AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

messagenounUS /ˈmesədʒ/

a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled

MinisternounUS /ˈmɪnəstər/

a person authorized to conduct religious worship

obtainedverbUS /əbˈteɪnd/

past form of “obtain” — come into possession of

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

passedverbUS /pæst/

past form of “pass” — go across or through

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

plotnounUS /plɑːt/

a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)

pocketnounUS /ˈpɑːkət/

a small pouch inside a garment for carrying small articles

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

PresidentnounUS /ˈprezədent/

an executive officer of a firm or corporation

PrimeadjectiveUS /praɪm/

first in rank or degree

producedverbUS /prəˈduːst/

past form of “produce” — bring forth or yield

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

profoundadjectiveUS /proʊˈfaʊnd/

showing intellectual penetration or emotional depth

From this reading Hal and Chester made a profound bow.

proofnounUS /pruːf/

any factual evidence that helps to establish the truth of something

ranverbUS /ræn/

inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

repliedverbUS /rɪˈplaɪd/

inflected form of “reply” — react verbally

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

sealverbUS /siːl/

make tight; secure against leakage

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

sirnounUS /sɜːr/

term of address for a man

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading The latter broke the seal and ran through it hurriedly.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

UNEXPECTEDadjectiveUS /ˌʌnɪkˈspektɪd/

not expected or anticipated

From this reading AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

YesnounUS /jes/

an affirmative

From this reading "Yes, sir," replied Hal, and from his pocket produced the document, which he passed to the Prime Minister.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

Chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches by Clair W. (Clair Wallace) Hayes holds 123 sentences, grouped into 25 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.

What does chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches contain?

Chapter 20 holds 123 sentences of The Boy Allies in the Trenches, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches by Clair W. (Clair Wallace) Hayes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 123 sentences, grouped into 25 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.

How do I study chapter 20 of The Boy Allies in the Trenches?

Work through the 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 25 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.

Can chapter 20 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 20 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.

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Yes. All 3780 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12571 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #12571, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 315 minutes of reading across 756 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The Boy Allies in the Trenches

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Boy Allies in the Trenches, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Isn't: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Boy Allies in the Trenches; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
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Chapter XX · Chapter 20

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