Chapter 20 of The Great Accident is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Great Accident is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston. A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer. That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest. He had no enemies. It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
Chapter 20 of The Great Accident is here in full — 289 sentences across 58 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/57 · 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.
past form of “arrest” — take into custody
From this reading “It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.”
provide evidence for; stand as proof of; show by one's behavior, attitude, or external attributes
From this reading “That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.”
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading “A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.”
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading “A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.”
plural of “enemy” — an opposing military force
From this reading “He had no enemies.”
a tangible symbol signifying approval or distinction
From this reading “MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.”
place in proper rank
From this reading “MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.”
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading “MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.”
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.
In this reading “A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.”
In this reading “A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.”
In this reading “It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.”
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 MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
past form of “arrest” — take into custody
From this reading It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
provide evidence for; stand as proof of; show by one's behavior, attitude, or external attributes
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
a person who is in charge
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
plural of “enemy” — an opposing military force
From this reading He had no enemies.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
a boy or man
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had no enemies.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
a tangible symbol signifying approval or distinction
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
place in proper rank
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
not any; not one
From this reading He had no enemies.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading A good fellow, and a cool, brave officer.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
a fundamental feeling that is hard to define but that people desire to experience
From this reading It was a pleasure to be arrested by him.
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
express in words
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
which person or people
From this reading That he was a good fellow, every one who knew him could attest.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading MARSHAL JIM RADABAUGH Jim Radabaugh, the city marshal, that is to say, the chief of police, was a man not without honor in Hardiston.
Chapter 20 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams holds 289 sentences, grouped into 58 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 289 sentences of The Great Accident, unabridged, divided into 58 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 289 sentences, grouped into 58 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 58 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 58 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 Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams on this page, its source edition and its audio.
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.
