Chapter 6 of The Boys of the Wireless is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Boys of the Wireless is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“This means business!” exclaimed Tom. What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended. The young wireless operator was a quick thinker. The call was for O-17. Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
Chapter 6 of The Boys of the Wireless is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally
From this reading “What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.”
gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
From this reading “Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.”
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading “Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.”
(mathematics) a symbol or function representing a mathematical operation
From this reading “The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.”
past form of “predict” — make a prediction about; tell in advance
From this reading “What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.”
move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment
From this reading “What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.”
an important intellectual
From this reading “The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.”
medium for communication
From this reading “The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.”
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 young wireless operator was a quick thinker.”
In this reading “What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.”
In this reading “Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The call was for O-17.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading “This means business!” exclaimed Tom.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The call was for O-17.
the act of discovering something
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading “This means business!” exclaimed Tom.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
the quality of being important and worthy of note
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
resulting from one's intentions
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end
From this reading “This means business!” exclaimed Tom.
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a form of address for a man
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
information about recent and important events
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading The call was for O-17.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
(mathematics) a symbol or function representing a mathematical operation
From this reading The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.
by chance
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a human being
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
past form of “predict” — make a prediction about; tell in advance
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
a facility equipped with special equipment and personnel for a particular purpose
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
an important intellectual
From this reading The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “This means business!” exclaimed Tom.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
male cat
From this reading “This means business!” exclaimed Tom.
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
in or at the place that
From this reading Tom knew from hearsay where that station was located.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading What Mr. Edson had predicted had happened—a stray message that meant something, the accidental discovery of news perhaps of vast importance to the person for whom it was intended.
medium for communication
From this reading The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The young wireless operator was a quick thinker.
Chapter 6 of The Boys of the Wireless by Frank V. Webster holds 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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 6 holds 106 sentences of The Boys of the Wireless, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Boys of the Wireless by Frank V. Webster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 6 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 Boys of the Wireless by Frank V. Webster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3128 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35044 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35044, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 260 minutes of reading across 626 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Boys of the Wireless section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The Boys of the Wireless 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 Boys of the Wireless, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
