Chapter 8 of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 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 English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack. Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted. New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage. "She's a widow--?" "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
Chapter 8 of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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 quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading “New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.”
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading “Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.”
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading “"Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.”
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading “"Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.”
dearly loved
From this reading “"Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.”
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading “New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.”
a woman whose husband is dead especially one who has not remarried
From this reading “"She's a widow--?"”
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading “New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.”
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 "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
the quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
dearly loved
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
a fat-soluble vitamin that is essential for normal reproduction; an important antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals in the body
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "She's a widow--?"
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
a special situation
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why, such a dear thing, Julia--Mrs. David E. Drack.
a woman whose husband is dead especially one who has not remarried
From this reading "She's a widow--?"
an affirmative
From this reading "Oh yes: she's not--" He caught himself up in time.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading New York was vast, and she had not had that advantage.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Have you heard of her?" he almost fluted.
Chapter 8 of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 by W. J. (William James) [Editor] Dawson holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 404 sentences of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 by W. J. (William James) [Editor] Dawson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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.
Common questions about reading The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 by W. J. (William James) [Editor] Dawson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3558 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10135 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10135, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 296 minutes of reading across 712 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Great English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1 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 English Short-Story Writers, Volume 1, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
