Chapter 4 of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.” “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.” “Here they come,” said Drake. They did come. But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
Chapter 4 of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading “But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.”
English explorer and admiral who was the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe and who helped to defeat the Spanish Armada (1540-1596)
From this reading ““You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.””
moderate in type or degree or effect or force; far from extreme
From this reading ““The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.””
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading ““You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.””
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading “But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.”
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading ““The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.””
an elaborate and systematic plan of action
From this reading “But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.”
the least favorable outcome
From this reading ““The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.””
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 “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the past participle of “be”
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “Here they come,” said Drake.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading They did come.
English explorer and admiral who was the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe and who helped to defeat the Spanish Armada (1540-1596)
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “Here they come,” said Drake.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
moderate in type or degree or effect or force; far from extreme
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
not any; not one
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
a woman schoolteacher (especially one regarded as strict)
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
an elaborate and systematic plan of action
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Here they come,” said Drake.
a special situation
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading But Drake's alert strategy served the end he had tried for.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the least favorable outcome
From this reading “The worst of a bad thing,” said the mild Bolles, “is having time to think about it, and we have been spared that.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You're no schoolmarm!” exclaimed Drake; “you please me.”
Chapter 4 of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories by Owen Wister holds 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 4 holds 202 sentences of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories by Owen Wister exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 4 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 Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories by Owen Wister on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4856 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1390 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1390, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 404 minutes of reading across 972 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories 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 Jimmyjohn Boss, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
