Chapter 18 of The Colossus: A Novel is here in full — 52 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The Colossus: A Novel is here in full — 52 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE INVESTMENT. It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door. "Henry, Henry!" It was Witherspoon's voice. "Yes."
Chapter 18 of The Colossus: A Novel is here in full — 52 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/10 · 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.
past form of “doze” — sleep lightly or for a short period of time
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
the act of investing; laying out money or capital in an enterprise with the expectation of profit
From this reading “THE INVESTMENT.”
deliver a sharp blow or push
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading “It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.”
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “It was Witherspoon's voice.”
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 It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
past form of “doze” — sleep lightly or for a short period of time
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
the act of investing; laying out money or capital in an enterprise with the expectation of profit
From this reading THE INVESTMENT.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
and nothing more
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
deliver a sharp blow or push
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE INVESTMENT.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading It was Witherspoon's voice.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
at the time that
From this reading It seemed to Henry that he had just dozed off to sleep when he was startled by a loud knock at the door.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Witherspoon's voice.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes."
Chapter 18 of The Colossus: A Novel by Opie Percival Read holds 52 sentences, grouped into 11 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 18 holds 52 sentences of The Colossus: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 11 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The Colossus: A Novel by Opie Percival Read exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 52 sentences, grouped into 11 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 11 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 11 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 18 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 Colossus: A Novel by Opie Percival Read on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Colossus: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Colossus: 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 Colossus: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
