Chapter 11 of The Great Diamond Syndicate is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Great Diamond Syndicate is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A FATAL ERRAND. “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room. Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least. The detective looked very grave. “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
Chapter 11 of The Great Diamond Syndicate is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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 police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “The detective looked very grave.”
a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission
From this reading “A FATAL ERRAND.”
bringing death
From this reading “A FATAL ERRAND.”
past form of “gain” — obtain
From this reading ““Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.”
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading ““Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.”
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy
From this reading ““Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.”
the quality of being secluded from the presence or view of others
From this reading ““Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.”
avoiding waste
From this reading “Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.”
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 teenager or a young adult male
In this reading ““Is it serious?” asked the young man.”
In this reading ““Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.”
In this reading “The detective looked very grave.”
In this reading “Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.”
In this reading “The detective looked very grave.”
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 A FATAL ERRAND.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading The detective looked very grave.
a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission
From this reading A FATAL ERRAND.
bringing death
From this reading A FATAL ERRAND.
past form of “gain” — obtain
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
death of a person
From this reading The detective looked very grave.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
the superlative of “little” that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by “the”; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading The detective looked very grave.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
the quality of being secluded from the presence or view of others
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
in the near future
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
avoiding waste
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
express in words
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Now tell me about it,” said Nick, as soon as they had gained the seclusion of a private room.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading Maynard told the story of the night, not sparing himself in the least.
precisely as stated
From this reading The detective looked very grave.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “Is it serious?” asked the young man.
Chapter 11 of The Great Diamond Syndicate by Nicholas (House name) Carter holds 129 sentences, grouped into 26 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 11 holds 129 sentences of The Great Diamond Syndicate, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Great Diamond Syndicate by Nicholas (House name) Carter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 129 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 11 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 Diamond Syndicate by Nicholas (House name) Carter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4246 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63340 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63340, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 353 minutes of reading across 850 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Great Diamond Syndicate section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of The Great Diamond Syndicate 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 Diamond Syndicate, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
