Chapter 20 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A SECRET. It was indeed Mehetabel. She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace. Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say. She said nothing.
Chapter 20 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
inflected form of “behold” — see with attention
From this reading “Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.”
-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
an open recess in a wall at the base of a chimney where a fire can be built
From this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading “Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.”
a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel)
From this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
with low volume
From this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
a state of agitation or turbulent change or development
From this reading “Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.”
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 “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.”
In this reading “She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.”
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 A SECRET.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
inflected form of “behold” — see with attention
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
an open recess in a wall at the base of a chimney where a fire can be built
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel)
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading It was indeed Mehetabel.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was indeed Mehetabel.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
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 Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was indeed Mehetabel.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading She said nothing.
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
with low volume
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading She said nothing.
express in words
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.
From this reading A SECRET.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
struck or filled with terror
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
a state of agitation or turbulent change or development
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was indeed Mehetabel.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading She entered quietly, without a word, carrying Bideabout's gun, which she placed in the corner, by the fireplace.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Jonas and his sister looked at her, at first terror-struck, as though they beheld a ghost, then with unrest, for they knew not what she would say.
Chapter 20 of The Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould holds 140 sentences, grouped into 28 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 140 sentences of The Broom-Squire, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 140 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7532 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30354 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30354, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1507 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Broom-Squire section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Broom-Squire 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 Broom-Squire, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
