Chapter 8 of The Iron Arrow Head is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Iron Arrow Head is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
KOEMPE! The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames. A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning. It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates. "_Koempe!"
Chapter 8 of The Iron Arrow Head is here in full — 82 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
only a very short time before
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
armor carried on the arm to intercept blows
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
An underground room or vault beneath an ancient building, often used for storage or burials.
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
extremely impressive in strength or excellence
From this reading “A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.”
plural of “frame” — the framework for a pair of eyeglasses
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
a male religious living in a cloister and devoting himself to contemplation and prayer and work
From this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
plural of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading “It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.”
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.
apply thoroughly; think through
In this reading “The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.”
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 noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
only a very short time before
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
armor carried on the arm to intercept blows
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
An underground room or vault beneath an ancient building, often used for storage or burials.
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
plural of “ear” — the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
extremely impressive in strength or excellence
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
plural of “frame” — the framework for a pair of eyeglasses
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
in a dim indistinct manner
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading KOEMPE!
an unmarried girl (especially a virgin)
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
the message that is intended or expressed or signified
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
a male religious living in a cloister and devoting himself to contemplation and prayer and work
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
an inhabitant of Scandinavia
From this reading It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
plural of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.
inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
plural of “soldier” — an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
(of muscles) relieved of stiffness by stretching
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was the war-cry of the Northman pirates.
at the time that
From this reading The monk and the two soldiers had barely stretched the Buckler Maiden upon the slab-stones of the crypt, when an icy terror ran through their frames.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A noise, at first heard indistinctly, now smote their ears with all its formidable meaning.
Chapter 8 of The Iron Arrow Head by Eugène Sue holds 82 sentences, grouped into 17 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 8 holds 82 sentences of The Iron Arrow Head, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Iron Arrow Head by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 82 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 8 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 Iron Arrow Head by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1970 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34452 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34452, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 164 minutes of reading across 394 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Iron Arrow Head section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of The Iron Arrow Head 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 Iron Arrow Head, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
