Chapter 20 of The Half-Back is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Half-Back is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AN OLD FRIEND. "MARCH! Joel March!" Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room. The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
Chapter 20 of The Half-Back is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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 place of worship that has its own altar
From this reading “Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.”
a Hebrew minor prophet
From this reading “Joel March!"”
United States physicist (born in Germany) noted for her research on the structure of the atom (1906-1972)
From this reading “Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.”
written matter that is recited from memory
From this reading “Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.”
English writer (1832-1904)
From this reading “The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.”
-ing form of “stride” — walk with long steps
From this reading “Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.”
plural of “tone” — the quality of a person's voice
From this reading “The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.”
inflected form of “trot” — run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading “The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.”
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 Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading AN OLD FRIEND.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
a place of worship that has its own altar
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
a line leading to a place or point
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
well known or easily recognized
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading AN OLD FRIEND.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
shoot down, of birds
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
a Hebrew minor prophet
From this reading Joel March!"
a room where books are kept
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
march in a procession
From this reading "MARCH!
United States physicist (born in Germany) noted for her research on the structure of the atom (1906-1972)
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
not any; not one
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading AN OLD FRIEND.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
written matter that is recited from memory
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
(usually preceded by “in”) a detail or point
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
cut with a saw
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
English writer (1832-1904)
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
-ing form of “stride” — walk with long steps
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
plural of “tone” — the quality of a person's voice
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
in the direction of
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
inflected form of “trot” — run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
the act of changing or reversing the direction of the course
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Joel was striding along under the shadow of the chapel on his way from a recitation to Mayer and his room.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The familiar tones came from the direction of the library, and turning he saw Stephen Remsen trotting toward him with no regard for the grass.
Chapter 20 of The Half-Back by Ralph Henry Barbour holds 102 sentences, grouped into 21 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 102 sentences of The Half-Back, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Half-Back by Ralph Henry Barbour exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 102 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 Half-Back by Ralph Henry Barbour on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3827 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #11041 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #11041, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 318 minutes of reading across 766 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Half-Back section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The Half-Back 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 Half-Back, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
