Chapter 28 of The Empty Sack is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVIII
Chapter 28 of The Empty Sack is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not." "I’m a married man, father, all right." "Then why don’t you live like a married man? I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things." Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
Chapter 28 of The Empty Sack is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
carefully weighed
From this reading “Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.”
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
a feeling of righteous anger
From this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
joined in matrimony
From this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
superlative of “simple” — having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
From this reading “Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.”
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading “I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."”
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
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 “I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."”
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
In this reading “"What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."”
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 "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "I’m a married man, father, all right."
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
an occurrence of something
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
carefully weighed
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "I’m a married man, father, all right."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I’m a married man, father, all right."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
a feeling of righteous anger
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "Then why don’t you live like a married man?
be an inhabitant of or reside in
From this reading "Then why don’t you live like a married man?
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
joined in matrimony
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
precisely, exactly
From this reading "I’m a married man, father, all right."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
superlative of “simple” — having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
express a supposition
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then why don’t you live like a married man?
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading I suppose you know that people are saying all sorts of things."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
used to introduce two or more possibilities
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Bob considered the simplest way in which to put his case.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Then why don’t you live like a married man?
in the company of; together with
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Then why don’t you live like a married man?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What I don’t understand, Bob," Collingham said, with faint indignation in his tone, "is whether you’re a married man or not."
Chapter 28 of The Empty Sack by Basil King holds 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 28 holds 451 sentences of The Empty Sack, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 28 of The Empty Sack by Basil King exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 28 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 Empty Sack by Basil King on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7013 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37412 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37412, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 584 minutes of reading across 1403 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Empty Sack section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of The Empty Sack 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 Empty Sack, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
