The Hand in the Dark

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Arthur J. (Arthur John) Rees • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for The Hand in the Dark

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

"It was before the war.

Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

I had been to Melville Island trying to match a pearl for the Devonshire necklace, and I went from the pearl fisheries to New Zealand, led there by rumours of the discovery of some wonderful black pearls.

It was, however, a wild-goose chase.

These rumours generally are.

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter III Reading 1/33

The Hand in the Dark

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/33 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

"It was before the war.

/ɪt wɑːz bɪˈfɔːr ðə wɔːr/

Line 2

Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

Line 3

/aɪ hæd bɪn tuː ˈmelvɪl ˈaɪlənd ˈtraɪɪŋ tuː mætʃ ə pɜːrl fɔːr ðə dɪˈvɑːnʃaɪr ˈnekləs ənd aɪ went frʌm ðə pɜːrl ˈfɪʃəriz tuː nuː ˈziːlənd led ðer baɪ ˈruːmərz ʌv ðə dɪˈskʌvəri ʌv sʌm ˈwʌndərfəl blæk pɜːrlz/

Line 4

It was, however, a wild-goose chase.

Line 5

These rumours generally are.

/ðiːz ˈruːmərz ˈdʒenərəli ɑːr/

Learner Dictionary

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.

Boche noun US /bɑːtʃ/

offensive term for a person of German descent

From this reading “Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'”

Deutschland noun US /ˈdɔɪtʃlænd/

a republic in central Europe; split into East Germany and West Germany after World War II and reunited in 1990

From this reading “Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'”

Devonshire noun US /dɪˈvɑːnʃaɪr/

a county in southwestern England

From this reading “I had been to Melville Island trying to match a pearl for the Devonshire necklace, and I went from the pearl fisheries to New Zealand, led there by rumours of the discovery of some wonderful black pearls.”

fisheries noun US /ˈfɪʃəriz/

plural of “fishery” — a workplace where fish are caught and processed and sold

Melville noun US /ˈmelvɪl/

United States writer of novels and short stories (1819-1891)

necklace noun US /ˈnekləs/

jewelry consisting of a cord or chain (often bearing gems) worn about the neck as an ornament (especially by women)

rumours noun US /ˈruːmərz/

plural of “rumour” — gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth

Zealand noun US /ˈziːlənd/

the largest island of Denmark and the site of Copenhagen

All words in this reading · 56

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading I had been to Melville Island trying to match a pearl for the Devonshire necklace, and I went from the pearl fisheries to New Zealand, led there by rumours of the discovery of some wonderful black pearls.

Alles

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading These rumours generally are.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading "It was before the war.

blackadjectiveUS /blæk/

being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light

BochenounUS /bɑːtʃ/

offensive term for a person of German descent

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

brokeadjectiveUS /broʊk/

lacking funds

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

chaseverbUS /tʃeɪs/

go after with the intent to catch

From this reading It was, however, a wild-goose chase.

DeutschlandnounUS /ˈdɔɪtʃlænd/

a republic in central Europe; split into East Germany and West Germany after World War II and reunited in 1990

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

DevonshirenounUS /dɪˈvɑːnʃaɪr/

a county in southwestern England

discoverynounUS /dɪˈskʌvəri/

the act of discovering something

dreamnounUS /driːm/

A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

fisheriesnounUS /ˈfɪʃəriz/

plural of “fishery” — a workplace where fish are caught and processed and sold

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

generallyadverbUS /ˈdʒenərəli/

usually; as a rule

From this reading These rumours generally are.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

happenedverbUS /ˈhæpənd/

past form of “happen” — come to pass

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

howeveradverbUS /ˌhaʊˈevər/

used to add a contrasting statement

From this reading It was, however, a wild-goose chase.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

IslandnounUS /ˈaɪlənd/

a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading "It was before the war.

lednounUS /led/

diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used

looseadjectiveUS /luːs/

not compact or dense in structure or arrangement

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

ManyadjectiveUS /ˈmeni/

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

matchverbUS /mætʃ/

be compatible, similar or consistent; coincide in their characteristics

MelvillenounUS /ˈmelvɪl/

United States writer of novels and short stories (1819-1891)

necklacenounUS /ˈnekləs/

jewelry consisting of a cord or chain (often bearing gems) worn about the neck as an ornament (especially by women)

NewadjectiveUS /nuː/

not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

pearlnounUS /pɜːrl/

a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel

pearlsnounUS /pɜːrlz/

plural of “pearl” — a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel

rumoursnounUS /ˈruːmərz/

plural of “rumour” — gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth

someadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

strangeadjectiveUS /streɪndʒ/

being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading "It was before the war.

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

ThesedeterminerUS /ðiːz/

the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned

From this reading These rumours generally are.

thingsnounUS /θɪŋz/

any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

tryingadjectiveUS /ˈtraɪɪŋ/

hard to endure

ueber

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

warnounUS /wɔːr/

the waging of armed conflict against an enemy

From this reading "It was before the war.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading "It was before the war.

wentverbUS /went/

inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically

wild-goose

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was, however, a wild-goose chase.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

wonderfuladjectiveUS /ˈwʌndərfəl/

extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers

worldnounUS /wɜːrld/

everything that exists anywhere

From this reading Many strange things have happened in the world before the Boche broke loose with his dream of 'Deutschland ueber Alles.'

ZealandnounUS /ˈziːlənd/

the largest island of Denmark and the site of Copenhagen

Chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark by Arthur J. (Arthur John) Rees holds 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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.

What does chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark contain?

Chapter 3 holds 165 sentences of The Hand in the Dark, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark by Arthur J. (Arthur John) Rees exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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.

How do I study chapter 3 of The Hand in the Dark?

Work through the 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 33 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.

Can chapter 3 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 3 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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Common questions about reading The Hand in the Dark by Arthur J. (Arthur John) Rees on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The Hand in the Dark?

Yes. All 6080 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20546 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The Hand in the Dark is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #20546, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The Hand in the Dark take to read?

About 506 minutes of reading across 1216 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The Hand in the Dark

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Hand in the Dark, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Heredith: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Hand in the Dark; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
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Chapter III · Chapter 3

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