Chapter 1 of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country. It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying. My wanderings disturb Lucy. She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark. She needn't worry.
Chapter 1 of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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.
plural of “afternoon” — the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading “I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.”
move deeply
From this reading “My wanderings disturb Lucy.”
a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
From this reading “She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.”
incomplete skeleton of female found in eastern Ethiopia in 1974
From this reading “My wanderings disturb Lucy.”
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading “She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.”
serving to purge or rid of sin
From this reading “It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.”
plural of “wandering” — travelling about without any clear destination
From this reading “My wanderings disturb Lucy.”
be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy
From this reading “She needn't worry.”
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.
later than; following
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
plural of “afternoon” — the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
Having no one else present.
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
free from dirt or impurities; or having clean habits
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
move deeply
From this reading My wanderings disturb Lucy.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
to a distinctly greater extent or degree than is common
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
a room in a private house or establishment where people can sit and talk and relax
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
incomplete skeleton of female found in eastern Ethiopia in 1974
From this reading My wanderings disturb Lucy.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She needn't worry.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
where the air is unconfined
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
serving to purge or rid of sin
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading It is sweet and clean out-of-doors, and I need purifying.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
up to a particular time
From this reading She is always on the lookout for me, in the hall or living-room or on the porch, especially if I do not come back until after dark.
close enough to be walked to
From this reading I spend my afternoons walking alone in the country.
plural of “wandering” — travelling about without any clear destination
From this reading My wanderings disturb Lucy.
be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy
From this reading She needn't worry.
Chapter 1 of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel by Olive Higgins Prouty holds 111 sentences, grouped into 23 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 1 holds 111 sentences of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel by Olive Higgins Prouty exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 111 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 1 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 Fifth Wheel: A Novel by Olive Higgins Prouty on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6031 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19436 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19436, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 502 minutes of reading across 1207 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Fifth Wheel: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Fifth Wheel: A Novel 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 Fifth Wheel: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
