Chapter 3 of The Dinner Club is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Dinner Club is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me. “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered. ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him. Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’ “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
Chapter 3 of The Dinner Club is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading “Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’”
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading ““‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’”
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading ““She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.”
earn on some commercial or business transaction; earn as salary or wages
From this reading ““‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’”
United States professional baseball player famous for hitting home runs (1895-1948)
From this reading ““‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’”
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading “‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.”
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading ““‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’”
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading ““‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.”
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 ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’
the two together, not just one
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’
earn on some commercial or business transaction; earn as salary or wages
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
United States professional baseball player famous for hitting home runs (1895-1948)
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
express in words
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading “She cowered back, looking first at him and then at me.
in or at that place or location
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
which person or people
From this reading ‘I tell you there was a man here—the man who shot him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Oh! they’ll believe me, won’t they?’
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “‘You _can’t_ think I did it,’ she whispered.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “‘Ruth,’ I said, ‘I want you to realise that we’re both of us your friends.’
Chapter 3 of The Dinner Club by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile holds 403 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 3 holds 403 sentences of The Dinner Club, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Dinner Club by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 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 3 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 Dinner Club by H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4821 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60525 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #60525, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 401 minutes of reading across 965 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Dinner Club section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of The Dinner Club 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 Dinner Club, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
