Chapter 18 of The Haunted Mine is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The Haunted Mine is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
GRUB-STAKING. "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine. What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?" "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him. "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
Chapter 18 of The Haunted Mine is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
plural of “chair” — a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading “"Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.”
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading “"Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.”
devoid of good sense or judgment
From this reading “What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"”
Roman Emperor and nephew of Constantine; he restored paganism as the official religion of the Roman Empire and destroyed Christian temples but his decision was reversed after his death (331?-363)
From this reading “"Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.”
a worthless lazy fellow
From this reading “What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"”
the act of applying force in order to move something away
From this reading “"Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.”
recurring again and again
From this reading “"Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.”
be seated
From this reading “"Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.”
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.
take a seat
In this reading “"Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.”
In this reading “"Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
anew
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
plural of “chair” — a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
devoid of good sense or judgment
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading GRUB-STAKING.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
Roman Emperor and nephew of Constantine; he restored paganism as the official religion of the Roman Empire and destroyed Christian temples but his decision was reversed after his death (331?-363)
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
a worthless lazy fellow
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
the act of applying force in order to move something away
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
recurring again and again
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
be seated
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
in the near future
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
in the direction of
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
precisely as stated
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What loon has been so foolish as to grub-stake you?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
the words that are spoken
From this reading "Grub-stake us?" repeated Julian, for the words were quite new to him.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes; he does not expect to get his money back again very soon.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Sit down," said Banta, pushing chairs toward the two boys with his foot; "I want to talk to you about that mine.
Chapter 18 of The Haunted Mine by Harry Castlemon holds 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 18 holds 160 sentences of The Haunted Mine, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The Haunted Mine by Harry Castlemon exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 18 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 Haunted Mine by Harry Castlemon on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4808 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37857 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37857, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 400 minutes of reading across 962 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Haunted Mine section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of The Haunted Mine 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 Haunted Mine, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
