Chapter 20 of The Forfeit is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Forfeit is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight. Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers. But Nan was stirring. She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window. She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
Chapter 20 of The Forfeit is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
an outlying farm building for storing grain or animal feed and housing farm animals
From this reading “She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.”
a structure or object that impedes free movement
From this reading “THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.”
past form of “bridle” — anger or take offense
From this reading “She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.”
a partially opened flower
From this reading “Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.”
your grandmother
From this reading “But Nan was stirring.”
having a saddle on or being mounted on a saddled animal
From this reading “She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.”
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading “But Nan was stirring.”
the first light of day
From this reading “Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.”
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.
to or in a foreign country
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
an outlying farm building for storing grain or animal feed and housing farm animals
From this reading She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
a structure or object that impedes free movement
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
past form of “bridle” — anger or take offense
From this reading She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
a partially opened flower
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But Nan was stirring.
the time after sunrise and before sunset while it is light outside
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
divisible by two
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
an established custom
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
in motion
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
your grandmother
From this reading But Nan was stirring.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
having a saddle on or being mounted on a saddled animal
From this reading She saw him bring his horse from the barn, saddled and bridled.
cut with a saw
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading But Nan was stirring.
the first light of day
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE BARRIER Jeff was abroad at daylight.
belonging to which person
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading She heard Jeff moving, and she saw him beyond her window.
but in spite of that
From this reading Even Bud, whose habit was sunrise, had not yet wakened from his heavy slumbers.
Chapter 20 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum holds 381 sentences, grouped into 77 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 20 holds 381 sentences of The Forfeit, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 381 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 20 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 Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7964 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19371 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19371, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1593 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Forfeit section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Forfeit 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 Forfeit, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
