Chapter 14 of The Disentanglers is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of The Disentanglers is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled. 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.' 'Blackbird catching?' said Merton. 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?' 'Yes; a very fine one.'
Chapter 14 of The Disentanglers is here in full — 402 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.
any bird of the family Icteridae whose male is black or predominantly black
From this reading “'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.”
(baseball) playing the position of catcher on a baseball team
From this reading “'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.”
several things grouped together or considered as a whole
From this reading “'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'”
plural of “implement” — instrumentation (a piece of equipment or tool) used to effect an end
From this reading “'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'”
a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
From this reading “'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'”
United States religious and writer (1915-1968)
From this reading “'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.”
filled with bewilderment
From this reading “'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.”
the commercial exchange (buying and selling on domestic or international markets) of goods and services
From this reading “'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'”
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 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
past form of “add” — make an addition (to); join or combine or unite with others; increase the quality, quantity, size or scope of
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
weapons considered collectively
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
any bird of the family Icteridae whose male is black or predominantly black
From this reading 'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
(baseball) playing the position of catcher on a baseball team
From this reading 'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.
several things grouped together or considered as a whole
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
being satisfactory or in satisfactory condition
From this reading 'Yes; a very fine one.'
a young female
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
plural of “implement” — instrumentation (a piece of equipment or tool) used to effect an end
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
United States religious and writer (1915-1968)
From this reading 'Blackbird catching?' said Merton.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
characteristic of or existing by virtue of geographic origin
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
not any; not one
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading 'Yes; a very fine one.'
by chance
From this reading 'No. But he had, perhaps, a collection of native arms and implements?'
filled with bewilderment
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
the commercial exchange (buying and selling on domestic or international markets) of goods and services
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
precisely as stated
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading 'But,' she added, 'he was never in the Labour trade.'
an affirmative
From this reading 'Yes, very much,' said the girl, entirely puzzled.
Chapter 14 of The Disentanglers by Andrew Lang holds 402 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 14 holds 402 sentences of The Disentanglers, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of The Disentanglers by Andrew Lang exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 402 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 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 Disentanglers by Andrew Lang on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7308 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17031 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17031, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1462 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Disentanglers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of The Disentanglers 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 Disentanglers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
