Chapter 8 of The Great Adventure is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Great Adventure is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
EBAG. And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir. It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin. As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious. But my curiosity got the better of me.
Chapter 8 of The Great Adventure is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
inflected form of “buy” — obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
From this reading “It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.”
plural of “canvas” — a heavy, closely woven fabric (used for clothing or chairs or sails or tents)
From this reading “It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.”
in a close relation or position in time or space
From this reading “It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.”
someone who purchases and maintains an inventory of goods to be sold
From this reading “As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.”
greatly pleased
From this reading “And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.”
address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.”
the place where something begins, where it springs into being
From this reading “It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.”
a principle or condition that customarily governs behavior
From this reading “As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.”
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 As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
inflected form of “buy” — obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
plural of “canvas” — a heavy, closely woven fabric (used for clothing or chairs or sails or tents)
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
in a close relation or position in time or space
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
someone who purchases and maintains an inventory of goods to be sold
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
greatly pleased
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading EBAG.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
immediately past
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
engage in
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading But my curiosity got the better of me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
the place where something begins, where it springs into being
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
a principle or condition that customarily governs behavior
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
(used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
term of address for a man
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading As a general rule it's a mistake for a dealer to be too curious.
up to a particular time
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It wasn't until I'd bought several of those small canvases from the Putney man that I began to inquire closely into their origin.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading And I'm delighted at last to make your acquaintance, sir.
Chapter 8 of The Great Adventure by Arnold Bennett holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 422 sentences of The Great Adventure, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Great Adventure by Arnold Bennett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Great Adventure section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Adventure, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
