Chapter 1 of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.” The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life. He opened his eyes. The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance. Near by stood a sombre group of men.
Chapter 1 of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
an experience that appalls
From this reading “The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.”
-ing form of “deceive” — be false to; be dishonest with
From this reading “The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.”
-ing form of “faint” — pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
From this reading “The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.”
possessive form of “hare” — swift timid long-eared mammal larger than a rabbit having a divided upper lip and long hind legs; young born furred and with open eyes
From this reading “The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.”
past form of “overpower” — overcome by superior force
From this reading “The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.”
a purple color or pigment
From this reading “The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.”
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading “The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.”
the time in the evening at which the sun begins to fall below the horizon
From this reading “I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.””
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 Near by stood a sombre group of men.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
an experience that appalls
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
-ing form of “deceive” — be false to; be dishonest with
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
the property created by the space between two objects or points
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He opened his eyes.
-ing form of “faint” — pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
possessive form of “hare” — swift timid long-eared mammal larger than a rabbit having a divided upper lip and long hind legs; young born furred and with open eyes
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He opened his eyes.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He opened his eyes.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
the force of workers available
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading He opened his eyes.
past form of “overpower” — overcome by superior force
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
a purple color or pigment
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
a perceptible indication of something not immediately apparent (as a visible clue that something has happened)
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
lacking brightness or color; dull
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
the vital principle or animating force within living things
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
not in physical motion
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Near by stood a sombre group of men.
(of muscles) relieved of stiffness by stretching
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
the time in the evening at which the sun begins to fall below the horizon
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I. THE SIGN OF THE SUNSET “BUT the man's almost dead.”
a special situation
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance.
the words that are spoken
From this reading The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life.
Chapter 1 of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel by Zane Grey holds 180 sentences, grouped into 36 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 1 holds 180 sentences of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel by Zane Grey exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 1 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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Project Gutenberg eBook #1262, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 493 minutes of reading across 1184 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of The Heritage of the Desert: A Novel 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 Heritage of the Desert: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
