Chapter 13 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Go slow," says I. "That sounds too international to take in all at once. It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'" "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula. "You'll see, six months from now.
Chapter 13 of The Gentle Grafter is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
the largest city and former capital of Turkey
From this reading “"'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.”
concerning or belonging to all or at least two or more nations
From this reading “"That sounds too international to take in all at once.”
the quality of being brought into conformity with nature
From this reading “It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"”
writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)
From this reading “It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"”
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading “"'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.”
not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time
From this reading “"Go slow," says I.”
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading “"That sounds too international to take in all at once.”
as much as a thimble will hold
From this reading “It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"”
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.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
Roman Emperor who succeeded Tiberius and whose uncontrolled passions resulted in manifest insanity; noted for his cruelty and tyranny; was assassinated (12-41)
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
the largest city and former capital of Turkey
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Go slow," says I.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Go slow," says I.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
concerning or belonging to all or at least two or more nations
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading "You'll see, six months from now.
the quality of being brought into conformity with nature
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "You'll see, six months from now.
on one occasion
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
plural of “say” — the chance to speak
From this reading "Go slow," says I.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "You'll see, six months from now.
the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
From this reading "You'll see, six months from now.
not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time
From this reading "Go slow," says I.
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
carry out
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
as much as a thimble will hold
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "That sounds too international to take in all at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'Twas press despatches from Constantinople," says Caligula.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's like 'thimble, thimble, who's got the naturalization papers?'"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You'll see, six months from now.
Chapter 13 of The Gentle Grafter by O. Henry holds 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 196 sentences of The Gentle Grafter, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The Gentle Grafter by O. Henry exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 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.
