Chapter 5 of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air. Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground. Yells and cries were heard on all sides. The interior of the mill was full of flying debris. Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
Chapter 5 of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
a region marking a boundary
From this reading “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
plural of “crash” — a loud resonant repeating noise
From this reading “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
the remains of something that has been destroyed or broken up
From this reading “The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.”
past form of “hurl” — throw forcefully
From this reading “Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.”
characterized by resonance
From this reading “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
a fissure in the earth's crust (or in the surface of some other planet) through which molten lava and gases erupt
From this reading “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
plural of “workman” — an employee who performs manual or industrial labor
From this reading “Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.”
plural of “yell” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading “Yells and cries were heard on all sides.”
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 “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
In this reading “ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.”
In this reading “Yells and cries were heard on all sides.”
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 ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
(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 Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
a region marking a boundary
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
plural of “crash” — a loud resonant repeating noise
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
plural of “cry” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
the remains of something that has been destroyed or broken up
From this reading The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.
moving swiftly
From this reading The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
past form of “hurl” — throw forcefully
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
situated within or suitable for inside a building
From this reading The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
move about in a confused manner
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
A large hole in the ground, or an abyss of darkness and peril.
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
let for money
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
characterized by resonance
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
plural of “side” — a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
in a violent manner
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
a fissure in the earth's crust (or in the surface of some other planet) through which molten lava and gases erupt
From this reading ON THE BRINK OF A VOLCANO Reverberating crashes rent the air.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The interior of the mill was full of flying debris.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading Bob Jarvis had put too much water on the pit.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
plural of “workman” — an employee who performs manual or industrial labor
From this reading Workmen in that part of the mill were hurled violently to the ground.
plural of “yell” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading Yells and cries were heard on all sides.
Chapter 5 of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills by James R. Mears holds 178 sentences, grouped into 36 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 5 holds 178 sentences of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills by James R. Mears exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 178 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 5 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 Steel Mills by James R. Mears on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4128 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39807 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39807, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 344 minutes of reading across 826 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of The Iron Boys in the Steel Mills 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 Steel Mills, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
