Chapter 14 of The Californians is here in full — 378 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of The Californians is here in full — 378 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill. Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it. What secrets did it hold? What skeletons? Were any within so desperate as she?
Chapter 14 of The Californians is here in full — 378 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/75 · 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.
arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
From this reading “Were any within so desperate as she?”
a river that rises in the Andes mountains in southwestern Colombia and flows generally northward to empty into the Caribbean Sea at Barranquilla
From this reading “Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.”
past form of “pause” — interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
From this reading “Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.”
with speed
From this reading “Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.”
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading “What secrets did it hold?”
plural of “skeleton” — something reduced to its minimal form
From this reading “What skeletons?”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.”
two times
From this reading “Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.”
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 Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading What secrets did it hold?
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading What secrets did it hold?
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
a river that rises in the Andes mountains in southwestern Colombia and flows generally northward to empty into the Caribbean Sea at Barranquilla
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
on one occasion
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
past form of “pause” — interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
with speed
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading What secrets did it hold?
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
plural of “skeleton” — something reduced to its minimal form
From this reading What skeletons?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
two times
From this reading Once or twice she paused before a house and stared at it.
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading Magdalena walked rapidly down the hill.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What secrets did it hold?
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading Were any within so desperate as she?
Chapter 14 of The Californians by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton holds 378 sentences, grouped into 76 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 14 holds 378 sentences of The Californians, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of The Californians by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 378 sentences, grouped into 76 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 76 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 76 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 14 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 Californians by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5670 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21903 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21903, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 472 minutes of reading across 1134 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Californians section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Californians 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 Californians, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
