Chapter 8 of The Cry at Midnight is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Cry at Midnight is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I've been tricked!" he muttered. "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida! It's only a cheap imitation!" "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!" "If she did it will be the worse for her!
Chapter 8 of The Cry at Midnight is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading “It's only a cheap imitation!"”
a state in southeastern United States between the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico; one of the Confederate states during the American Civil War
From this reading “"This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!”
United States writer of novels and short stories mostly on moral themes (1804-1864)
From this reading “"This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!”
the doctrine that representations of nature or human behavior should be accurate imitations
From this reading “It's only a cheap imitation!"”
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading “"I've been tricked!" he muttered.”
of something having the color of a blue sapphire
From this reading “"This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!”
past form of “sneak” — to go stealthily or furtively
From this reading “"Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"”
past form of “trick” — deceive somebody
From this reading “"I've been tricked!" he muttered.”
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.
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's only a cheap imitation!"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
the past participle of “be”
From this reading "I've been tricked!" he muttered.
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading It's only a cheap imitation!"
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
a state in southeastern United States between the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico; one of the Confederate states during the American Civil War
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
a young female
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
United States writer of novels and short stories mostly on moral themes (1804-1864)
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I've been tricked!" he muttered.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I've been tricked!" he muttered.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
the doctrine that representations of nature or human behavior should be accurate imitations
From this reading It's only a cheap imitation!"
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's only a cheap imitation!"
by chance
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading "I've been tricked!" he muttered.
and nothing more
From this reading It's only a cheap imitation!"
of something having the color of a blue sapphire
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
past form of “show” — give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
past form of “sneak” — to go stealthily or furtively
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "This isn't the sapphire Mrs. Hawthorne showed me in Florida!
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading "Maybe that girl sneaked in and took it herself!"
past form of “trick” — deceive somebody
From this reading "I've been tricked!" he muttered.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
(comparative of “bad”) inferior to another in quality or condition or desirability
From this reading "If she did it will be the worse for her!
Chapter 8 of The Cry at Midnight by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt holds 438 sentences, grouped into 88 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 8 holds 438 sentences of The Cry at Midnight, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Cry at Midnight by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 438 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 8 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 Cry at Midnight by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3881 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34441 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34441, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 323 minutes of reading across 777 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Cry at Midnight section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Cry at Midnight 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 Cry at Midnight, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
