Chapter 9 of The Iron Boys in the Mines is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Iron Boys in the Mines is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve. "Sure." "Then I'll take mine off, too." He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles. "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
Chapter 9 of The Iron Boys in the Mines is here in full — 122 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/24 · 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.
endless loop of flexible material between two rotating shafts or pulleys
From this reading “He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.”
plural of “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.”
reach, make, or come to a decision about something
From this reading “"How are we going to decide it, Bob?"”
be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading “He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.”
shining unsteadily
From this reading “He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.”
plural of “gladiator” — (ancient Rome) a professional combatant or a captive who entertained the public by engaging in mortal combat
From this reading “YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.”
past form of “question” — challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading “YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.”
past form of “tighten” — make tight or tighter
From this reading “He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.”
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.
leave
In this reading “YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
endless loop of flexible material between two rotating shafts or pulleys
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
plural of “boot” — footwear that covers the whole foot and lower leg
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
plural of “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
ellipse in which the two axes are of equal length; a plane curve generated by one point moving at a constant distance from a fixed point
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
reach, make, or come to a decision about something
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
be in motion due to some air or water current
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
shining unsteadily
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
plural of “gladiator” — (ancient Rome) a professional combatant or a captive who entertained the public by engaging in mortal combat
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
the act of departing
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Then I'll take mine off, too."
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
come together
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Then I'll take mine off, too."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
past form of “question” — challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
get rid of
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "Sure."
carry out
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then I'll take mine off, too."
past form of “tighten” — make tight or tighter
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "Then I'll take mine off, too."
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "How are we going to decide it, Bob?"
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading He did so, tightened his belt and stepped out into the drift well within the flickering circle of light shed by the two candles.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading YOUNG GLADIATORS MEET "Going to take off your boots?" questioned Steve.
Chapter 9 of The Iron Boys in the Mines by James R. Mears holds 122 sentences, grouped into 25 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 9 holds 122 sentences of The Iron Boys in the Mines, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Iron Boys in the Mines by James R. Mears exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 122 sentences, grouped into 25 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 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 25 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 9 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 Boys in the Mines by James R. Mears on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4010 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39083 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39083, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 334 minutes of reading across 802 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Iron Boys in the Mines section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of The Iron Boys in the Mines 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 Boys in the Mines, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
