Chapter 12 of The Driver is here in full — 284 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Driver is here in full — 284 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself. She had a passion to be utterly free. It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature. Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her. That refuge now was gone.
Chapter 12 of The Driver is here in full — 284 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/56 · 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.
beaten or overcome; not victorious
From this reading “It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.”
(psychology) an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary
From this reading “Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.”
determined or actuated by emotion rather than reason
From this reading “It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.”
filled with wonder and delight
From this reading “Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.”
of or associated with or requiring the use of the mind
From this reading “It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.”
suggesting an unhealthy mental state
From this reading “It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.”
a search for an alternative that meets cognitive criteria
From this reading “A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.”
an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
From this reading “A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.”
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 “It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.”
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 A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.
physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or split
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
beaten or overcome; not victorious
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
(psychology) an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary
From this reading Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.
determined or actuated by emotion rather than reason
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
filled with wonder and delight
From this reading Her delusion had been that circumstances enthralled her.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
set up or found
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
destroyed or killed
From this reading That refuge now was gone.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
of or associated with or requiring the use of the mind
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
suggesting an unhealthy mental state
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading That refuge now was gone.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
a strong feeling or emotion
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
something many people believe that is false
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
a future prospect or potential
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
a search for an alternative that meets cognitive criteria
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
a safe place
From this reading That refuge now was gone.
belonging to or characteristic of Romanticism or the Romantic Movement in the arts
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading It was a cold, intellectual phantasy, defeated in every possibility by some strange, morbid no-saying of her emotional nature.
an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading She had a passion to be utterly free.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading A BROKEN SYMBOL i Vera by this time was in high, romantic quest of that which cannot be found outside oneself.
Chapter 12 of The Driver by Garet Garrett holds 284 sentences, grouped into 57 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 12 holds 284 sentences of The Driver, unabridged, divided into 57 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Driver by Garet Garrett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 284 sentences, grouped into 57 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 57 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 57 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 12 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 Driver by Garet Garrett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5408 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65853 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65853, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 450 minutes of reading across 1082 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Driver section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Driver 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 Driver, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
