Chapter 23 of The Forfeit is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Forfeit is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see. It was as well. There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so. Passions are not always sane. They are not always human.
Chapter 23 of The Forfeit is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
traveling across
From this reading “TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.”
characteristic of humanity
From this reading “They are not always human.”
plural of “life” — a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading “There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.”
a public toilet for men
From this reading “There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.”
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading “There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.”
plural of “passion” — a strong feeling or emotion
From this reading “Passions are not always sane.”
mentally healthy; free from mental disorder
From this reading “Passions are not always sane.”
light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used especially for timbers and millwork
From this reading “TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.”
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.
Having no one else present.
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading Passions are not always sane.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It was as well.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
traveling across
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
opinion or judgment
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
characteristic of humanity
From this reading They are not always human.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was as well.
plural of “life” — a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
a public toilet for men
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Passions are not always sane.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
plural of “passion” — a strong feeling or emotion
From this reading Passions are not always sane.
mentally healthy; free from mental disorder
From this reading Passions are not always sane.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used especially for timbers and millwork
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
in or at that place or location
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They are not always human.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was as well.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading It was as well.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading TO SPRUCE CROSSING The eyes of the night were there alone to see.
at the time that
From this reading There are moments in men's lives when it is best that it should be so.
Chapter 23 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum holds 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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 23 holds 106 sentences of The Forfeit, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 23 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.
