Chapter 4 of The House of a Thousand Candles is here in full — 242 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The House of a Thousand Candles is here in full — 242 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night. The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it. The branches of a great tree brushed the panes. I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow. “Did something happen, sir?”
Chapter 4 of The House of a Thousand Candles is here in full — 242 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/48 · 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.
third-person singular of “bate” — moderate or restrain; lessen the force of
From this reading “I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.”
touched lightly in passing; grazed against
From this reading “The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.”
hinge joint between the forearm and upper arm and the corresponding joint in the forelimb of a quadruped
From this reading “I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.”
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading “The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.”
restraint that attaches to something or holds something in place
From this reading “I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.”
plural of “pane” — sheet glass cut in shapes for windows or doors
From this reading “The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.”
past form of “peer” — look searchingly
From this reading “A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.”
inflected form of “tug” — pull hard
From this reading “I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.”
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 A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
past form of “approach” — move towards
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
(sometimes followed by “of”) having or showing knowledge or understanding or realization or perception
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
third-person singular of “bate” — moderate or restrain; lessen the force of
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
inflected form of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
plural of “branch” — a division of some larger or more complex organization
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
touched lightly in passing; grazed against
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “Did something happen, sir?”
hinge joint between the forearm and upper arm and the corresponding joint in the forelimb of a quadruped
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
restraint that attaches to something or holds something in place
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
come to pass
From this reading “Did something happen, sir?”
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
a body of (usually fresh) water surrounded by land
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
plural of “pane” — sheet glass cut in shapes for windows or doors
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
past form of “peer” — look searchingly
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
term of address for a man
From this reading “Did something happen, sir?”
a thing, without saying which
From this reading “Did something happen, sir?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading The branches of a great tree brushed the panes.
inflected form of “tug” — pull hard
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
at the time that
From this reading I was tugging at the fastening of the window when I became aware of Bates at my elbow.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading A VOICE FROM THE LAKE I ran to the window and peered out into the night.
the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
From this reading The wood through which we had approached the house seemed to encompass it.
Chapter 4 of The House of a Thousand Candles by Meredith Nicholson holds 242 sentences, grouped into 49 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 4 holds 242 sentences of The House of a Thousand Candles, unabridged, divided into 49 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The House of a Thousand Candles by Meredith Nicholson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 242 sentences, grouped into 49 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 49 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 49 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 4 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 #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
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How to work through The House of a Thousand Candles section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The House of a Thousand Candles, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
