Chapter XIII of The Fate of a Crown, “Dom Pedro de Alcantara,” is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter XIII of The Fate of a Crown, “Dom Pedro de Alcantara,” is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor. He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca. At his back were two others, silent but alert. “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?” I asked, with assumed composure.
Chapter XIII of The Fate of a Crown, “Dom Pedro de Alcantara,” is here in full — 93 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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.
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading “At his back were two others, silent but alert.”
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading “I asked, with assumed composure.”
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.”
a person who captures and holds people or animals
From this reading “I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.”
past form of “command” — be in command of
From this reading “He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.”
steadiness of mind under stress
From this reading “I asked, with assumed composure.”
plural of “guard” — a person who keeps watch over something or someone
From this reading “He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.”
always the same; showing a single form or character in all occurrences
From this reading “He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.”
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 held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.”
In this reading “He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.”
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.
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading I asked, with assumed composure.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading I asked, with assumed composure.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
a person who captures and holds people or animals
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
past form of “command” — be in command of
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
steadiness of mind under stress
From this reading I asked, with assumed composure.
an official prosecutor for a judicial district
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
plural of “guard” — a person who keeps watch over something or someone
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
work done by one person or group that benefits another
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
marked by absence of sound
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
at a steady rate or pace
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I held the candle steadily and stared at my captor.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
always the same; showing a single form or character in all occurrences
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was dressed in the uniform of an officer of the royal guards—the body commanded by Fonseca.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading At his back were two others, silent but alert.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I asked, with assumed composure.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You are here in the service of General da Fonseca?”
Chapter 13 of The Fate of a Crown by L. Frank (Lyman Frank) Baum holds 93 sentences, grouped into 19 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 13 holds 93 sentences of The Fate of a Crown, unabridged, divided into 19 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The Fate of a Crown by L. Frank (Lyman Frank) Baum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 93 sentences, grouped into 19 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 19 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 19 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 13 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 Fate of a Crown by L. Frank (Lyman Frank) Baum on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2883 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #53566 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #53566, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 240 minutes of reading across 577 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Fate of a Crown section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The Fate of a Crown 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 Fate of a Crown, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
