Chapter 20 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?” “Idle curiosity,” he said. She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark. “Something’s happened to you,” she said. “Right,” he answered cheerfully.
Chapter 20 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 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.
third-person singular of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading “She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?””
in a cheerful manner
From this reading ““Right,” he answered cheerfully.”
finely ground tobacco wrapped in paper; for smoking
From this reading “She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?””
an alert and refreshed state
From this reading “She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.”
not in action or at work
From this reading ““Idle curiosity,” he said.”
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading “She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.”
past form of “scrutinize” — to look at critically or searchingly, or in minute detail
From this reading “She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.”
On the present night.
From this reading “She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?””
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 ““Idle curiosity,” he said.”
In this reading ““Right,” he answered cheerfully.”
In this reading “She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading “Right,” he answered cheerfully.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
third-person singular of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
showing who or what does the action
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
in a cheerful manner
From this reading “Right,” he answered cheerfully.
finely ground tobacco wrapped in paper; for smoking
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading “Idle curiosity,” he said.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
an alert and refreshed state
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading “Something’s happened to you,” she said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Idle curiosity,” he said.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
not in action or at work
From this reading “Idle curiosity,” he said.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
set afire or burning
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
be compatible, similar or consistent; coincide in their characteristics
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “Right,” he answered cheerfully.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Idle curiosity,” he said.
past form of “scrutinize” — to look at critically or searchingly, or in minute detail
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Something’s happened to you,” she said.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She puffed on her cigarette and scrutinized his face by the glow it made in the dark.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Something’s happened to you,” she said.
On the present night.
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading She lighted her cigarette at his match, and then asked, “What brings you here tonight?”
Chapter 20 of The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell holds 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 20 holds 412 sentences of The Briary Bush: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 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.
Common questions about reading The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9096 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #58622 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #58622, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1820 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Briary Bush: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Briary Bush: A Novel 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 Briary Bush: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
