Chapter 9 of The City of Numbered Days is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The City of Numbered Days is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her. "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment. "Is it business?" she laughed. "Yes, it is business." "Good-by, then.
Chapter 9 of The City of Numbered Days is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
a feeling of dissatisfaction that results when your expectations are not realized
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading “"Is it business?" she laughed.”
in such a manner as could not be otherwise
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
make available or accessible, provide or furnish
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
marked by suitability or rightness or appropriateness
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
a polite refusal of an invitation
From this reading “"I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.”
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 had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.”
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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading "Is it business?" she laughed.
a feeling of dissatisfaction that results when your expectations are not realized
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
a farewell remark
From this reading "Good-by, then.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is it business?" she laughed.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading "Is it business?" she laughed.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
in such a manner as could not be otherwise
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
make available or accessible, provide or furnish
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
marked by suitability or rightness or appropriateness
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
a polite refusal of an invitation
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Good-by, then.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
in the direction of
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading She had turned toward the door and he went to open it for her.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, it is business."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I am afraid I shall have to offer my regrets to you, and to Miss Schermerhorn as well, if she needs them," he said, with the proper outward show of disappointment.
Chapter 9 of The City of Numbered Days by Francis Lynde holds 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 9 holds 396 sentences of The City of Numbered Days, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The City of Numbered Days by Francis Lynde exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 9 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 City of Numbered Days by Francis Lynde on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4028 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37249 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37249, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 335 minutes of reading across 806 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The City of Numbered Days section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The City of Numbered Days 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 City of Numbered Days, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
