Chapter 12 of The Crime of the French Café and Other is here in full — 136 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Crime of the French Café and Other is here in full — 136 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED. Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well. There is not a house to match it in this country. A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures. It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
Chapter 12 of The Crime of the French Café and Other is here in full — 136 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
plural of “adventure” — a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful)
From this reading “A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.”
with boldness, in a bold manner
From this reading “NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.”
(used of soaps or cleaning agents) having a substance (an abrasive or filler) added to increase effectiveness
From this reading “It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.”
past form of “challenge” — take exception to
From this reading “NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.”
(astrology) one of 12 equal areas into which the zodiac is divided
From this reading “Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.”
be compatible, similar or consistent; coincide in their characteristics
From this reading “There is not a house to match it in this country.”
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading “NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.”
not disturbed by strife or turmoil or war
From this reading “It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within 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 There is not a house to match it in this country.
plural of “adventure” — a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful)
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
in the past
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
with boldness, in a bold manner
From this reading NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.
(used of soaps or cleaning agents) having a substance (an abrasive or filler) added to increase effectiveness
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
past form of “challenge” — take exception to
From this reading NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
ten 10s
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
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 Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
(astrology) one of 12 equal areas into which the zodiac is divided
From this reading Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
be compatible, similar or consistent; coincide in their characteristics
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading NICK IS BOLDLY CHALLENGED.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
not disturbed by strife or turmoil or war
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
the place where some action occurs
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading There is not a house to match it in this country.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
(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 Nick knew the old Plummer mansion well.
which person or people
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading It was built, certainly, by one who did not expect a peaceful and quiet life within it.
a late time of life
From this reading A hundred years and more ago it must have been the scene of strange adventures.
Chapter 12 of The Crime of the French Café and Other by Nicholas (House name) Carter holds 136 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 12 holds 136 sentences of The Crime of the French Café and Other, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Crime of the French Café and Other by Nicholas (House name) Carter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 136 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 12 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 Crime of the French Café and Other by Nicholas (House name) Carter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4158 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #11989 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #11989, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 346 minutes of reading across 832 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Crime of the French Café and Other section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of The Crime of the French Café and Other 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 Crime of the French Café and Other, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
