Chapter 24 of The iron heel is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIV
Chapter 24 of The iron heel is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly. When I first awoke, it was night. Garthwaite had not returned. I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time. As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
Chapter 24 of The iron heel is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
inflected form of “awake” — stop sleeping
From this reading “When I first awoke, it was night.”
a period of 100 years
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
extreme fatigue
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
plural of “explosion” — a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading “As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.”
A terrifying or distressing dream.
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
inflected form of “sleep” — be asleep
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
deeply or completely
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
position 20 in a countable series of things
From this reading “NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.”
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 NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
inflected form of “awake” — stop sleeping
From this reading When I first awoke, it was night.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
a period of 100 years
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
separated in space or coming from or going to a distance
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
extreme fatigue
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
plural of “explosion” — a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
opinion or judgment
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading When I first awoke, it was night.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Garthwaite had not returned.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading When I first awoke, it was night.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
A terrifying or distressing dream.
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
not any; not one
From this reading I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading Garthwaite had not returned.
Identical; not different.
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
inflected form of “sleep” — be asleep
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
deeply or completely
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time.
position 20 in a countable series of things
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading When I first awoke, it was night.
look attentively
From this reading I had lost my watch and had no idea of the time.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading NIGHTMARE I had not closed my eyes the night before on the Twentieth Century, and what of that and of my exhaustion I slept soundly.
at the time that
From this reading When I first awoke, it was night.
in the company of; together with
From this reading As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard the same dull sound of distant explosions.
Chapter 24 of The iron heel by Jack London holds 130 sentences, grouped into 26 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 24 holds 130 sentences of The iron heel, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 24 of The iron heel by Jack London exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 24 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 heel by Jack London on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5889 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1164 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1164, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 490 minutes of reading across 1178 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The iron heel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The iron heel 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 heel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
