Chapter 14 of The Cross and the Hammer is here in full — 117 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of The Cross and the Hammer is here in full — 117 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ALFRED OF MERCIA. They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank. They found Biorn drawing up his men. "Why, what's the matter, Biorn?" "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
Chapter 14 of The Cross and the Hammer is here in full — 117 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading “ALFRED OF MERCIA.”
sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)
From this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
having gaps or spaces
From this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading “They found Biorn drawing up his men.”
a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
water frozen in the solid state
From this reading “"I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."”
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
distant but within sight (“yon” is dialectal)
From this reading “"I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."”
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 “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
In this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
seek information from
In this reading “"I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."”
In this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
In this reading “They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.”
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 They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading ALFRED OF MERCIA.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
having gaps or spaces
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
set up or found
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
water frozen in the solid state
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading "Why, what's the matter, Biorn?"
the force of workers available
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ALFRED OF MERCIA.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ALFRED OF MERCIA.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading They found Biorn drawing up his men.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They dashed down the hill, and in a few minutes were through the trees and on the river bank.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why, what's the matter, Biorn?"
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why, what's the matter, Biorn?"
distant but within sight (“yon” is dialectal)
From this reading "I am not sure, Jarl, but look up the ice yonder."
Chapter 14 of The Cross and the Hammer by H. (Henry) Bedford-Jones holds 117 sentences, grouped into 24 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 117 sentences of The Cross and the Hammer, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of The Cross and the Hammer by H. (Henry) Bedford-Jones exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 117 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 Cross and the Hammer by H. (Henry) Bedford-Jones 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 Cross and the Hammer section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Cross and the Hammer 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 Cross and the Hammer, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
