Chapter 1 of The Great Accident is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Great Accident is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc. Set up and electrotyped. Published March, 1920. There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others. The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
Chapter 1 of The Great Accident is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/12 · 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.
a woman who has recently been married
From this reading “Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.”
plural of “cocktail” — a short mixed drink
From this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
plural of “horizon” — the line at which the sky and Earth appear to meet
From this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
the lack of knowledge or education
From this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
plural of “interest” — a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
plural of “kind” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading “There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.”
plural of “town” — an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
Possessing or showing courage or determination; heroic. (Dũng cảm, quả cảm, anh hùng.)
From this reading “Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
a community of people smaller than a town
In this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
In this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
set up or found
In this reading “Set up and electrotyped.”
keep in mind for attention or consideration
In this reading “The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Published March, 1920.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
(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 Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Set up and electrotyped.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
a woman who has recently been married
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
plural of “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
plural of “cocktail” — a short mixed drink
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Set up and electrotyped.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
your parents
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
plural of “horizon” — the line at which the sky and Earth appear to meet
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
the lack of knowledge or education
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
of great significance or value
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
plural of “interest” — a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
plural of “kind” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
march in a procession
From this reading Published March, 1920.
the force of workers available
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
make or become more narrow or restricted
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
prepared and printed for distribution and sale
From this reading Published March, 1920.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Set up and electrotyped.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
plural of “town” — an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading There are two kinds of people: small-town folks, and others.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Set up and electrotyped.
Possessing or showing courage or determination; heroic. (Dũng cảm, quả cảm, anh hùng.)
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Author of “The Sea Bride,” “All the Brothers Were Valiant,” etc.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The others are inclined to think of the people of the small towns as men and women of narrow horizons and narrow interests and a vast ignorance of such important things as cocktails.
Chapter 1 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams holds 62 sentences, grouped into 13 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 62 sentences of The Great Accident, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 62 sentences, grouped into 13 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 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 13 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.
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Yes. All 12440 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64002 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64002, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2488 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Great Accident section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The Great Accident 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 Great Accident, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
