Chapter 8 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy. 'The town's nothing but a head waiter. If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy. When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home. That's where we'll go to catch him.'
Chapter 8 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading “That's where we'll go to catch him.'”
examine so as to determine accuracy, quality, or condition
From this reading “If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.”
activities that are enjoyable or amusing
From this reading “If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.”
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading “When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.”
a woman's close-fitting foundation garment
From this reading “When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.”
the extreme end of something; especially something pointed
From this reading “If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.”
possessive form of “town” — an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading “'The town's nothing but a head waiter.”
a person whose occupation is to serve at table (as in a restaurant)
From this reading “'The town's nothing but a head waiter.”
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 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
a youthful male person
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading That's where we'll go to catch him.'
examine so as to determine accuracy, quality, or condition
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
activities that are enjoyable or amusing
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
plural of “go” — a time period for working (after which you will be relieved by someone else)
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
headdress that protects the head from bad weather; has shaped crown and usually a brim
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading That's where we'll go to catch him.'
where you live at a particular time
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
engage in
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
be standing; be upright
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
a woman's close-fitting foundation garment
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
the extreme end of something; especially something pointed
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
possessive form of “town” — an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
a person whose occupation is to serve at table (as in a restaurant)
From this reading 'The town's nothing but a head waiter.
plural of “want” — a state of extreme poverty
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That's where we'll go to catch him.'
at the time that
From this reading When a Pittsburger wants to spend money and have a good time he stays at home.
in or at the place that
From this reading That's where we'll go to catch him.'
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading "'That's the voice of New York,' goes on Andy.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading If you tip it too much it'll go and stand by the door and make fun of you to the hat check boy.
Chapter 8 of The Gentle Grafter by O. Henry holds 183 sentences, grouped into 37 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 8 holds 183 sentences of The Gentle Grafter, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Gentle Grafter by O. Henry exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 183 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 8 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 Gentle Grafter by O. Henry on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2822 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1805 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1805, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 235 minutes of reading across 565 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Gentle Grafter section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Gentle Grafter 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 Gentle Grafter, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
