Chapter 8 of The Crystal Hunters is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Crystal Hunters is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!" Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once: "Yes, herr, of course. It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges." "Well, where did it come from!
Chapter 8 of The Crystal Hunters is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
a solid piece of something (usually having flat rectangular sides)
From this reading “"But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"”
United States labor leader who organized the longshoremen (1901-1990)
From this reading “It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."”
a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place
From this reading “It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."”
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading “It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."”
a German man; used before the name as a title equivalent to Mr in English
From this reading “"Yes, herr, of course.”
the property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field
From this reading “Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:”
United States operatic tenor (born in Denmark) noted for his Wagnerian roles (1890-1973)
From this reading “Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:”
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading “Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:”
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 "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
a solid piece of something (usually having flat rectangular sides)
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
United States labor leader who organized the longshoremen (1901-1990)
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Well, where did it come from!
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading "Yes, herr, of course.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Well, where did it come from!
unlike in nature or quality or form or degree
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "Well, where did it come from!
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
a German man; used before the name as a title equivalent to Mr in English
From this reading "Yes, herr, of course.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
the property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
United States operatic tenor (born in Denmark) noted for his Wagnerian roles (1890-1973)
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
on one occasion
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "But this great block is a different kind of stone, is it not!"
the act of using
From this reading It is the grey hard stone that they use for building bridges."
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading Melchior looked at the vast mass, and said at once:
(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 "Well, where did it come from!
in or at the place that
From this reading "Well, where did it come from!
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, herr, of course.
Chapter 8 of The Crystal Hunters by George Manville Fenn holds 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 405 sentences of The Crystal Hunters, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Crystal Hunters by George Manville Fenn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Crystal Hunters by George Manville Fenn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6401 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24516 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24516, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 533 minutes of reading across 1281 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Crystal Hunters section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of The Crystal Hunters 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 Crystal Hunters, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
