Chapter 20 of The Intrusions of Peggy is here in full — 382 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Intrusions of Peggy is here in full — 382 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented. 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane. 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!' Miles Childwick grumbled. 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
Chapter 20 of The Intrusions of Peggy is here in full — 382 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
showily imitative of art or artists
From this reading “'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.”
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading “'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'”
showing or experiencing dissatisfaction or restless longing
From this reading “PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.”
past form of “grumble” — show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading “Miles Childwick grumbled.”
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading “'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.”
restricted to something
From this reading “PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.”
a gradual sinking to a lower level
From this reading “'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.”
past form of “summon” — call in an official matter, such as to attend court
From this reading “PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.”
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.
In this reading “'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.”
In this reading “'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.”
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 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
later than; following
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
showily imitative of art or artists
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
the past participle of “be”
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Miles Childwick grumbled.
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
showing or experiencing dissatisfaction or restless longing
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
usually; as a rule
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
past form of “grumble” — show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading Miles Childwick grumbled.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
and nothing more
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
take the midday meal
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
an area that is approximately central within some larger region
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
plural of “mile” — a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading Miles Childwick grumbled.
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
restricted to something
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
on the contrary
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
a gradual sinking to a lower level
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
past form of “summon” — call in an official matter, such as to attend court
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 'Just in the middle of a business man's business day!' ejaculated Arty Kane.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading 'Just as I'm generally sat down comfortably to lunch!'
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading PURELY BUSINESS They did not know what they had been summoned for, and they were rather discontented.
at the time that
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading 'Just when I'm settling down to work after breakfast!' moaned Arty.
Chapter 20 of The Intrusions of Peggy by Anthony Hope holds 382 sentences, grouped into 77 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 382 sentences of The Intrusions of Peggy, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Intrusions of Peggy by Anthony Hope exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 382 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 Intrusions of Peggy by Anthony Hope on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8498 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #47319 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #47319, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1700 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Intrusions of Peggy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The Intrusions of Peggy 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 Intrusions of Peggy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
