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The Judgment House
The Judgment House

Chapter IX

Cover illustration for The Judgment House
Context Illustration Reading 1/78 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"
The words were almost spat out.
The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.
At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.
He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Judgment House

Chapter IX

Reading 1/78 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"
Line 2
The words were almost spat out.
Line 3
The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.
Line 4
At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.
Line 5
He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Again noun US /again/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.”

Against preposition US /əˈɡenst/

touching and pressing; in opposition to

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

Dream noun US /driːm/

A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.

From this reading “He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.”

Drew noun US /drew/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

Foot noun US /foot/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

Himself pronoun US /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.”

Those determiner US /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading “He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.”

While conjunction US /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading “The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.”

All words in this reading · 74

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

addressed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

Africa

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

againnounUS /again/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

againstprepositionUS /əˈɡenst/

touching and pressing; in opposition to

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

all

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

almost

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The words were almost spat out.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

APPIAN

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

beat

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

bookshelves

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

Byng

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

Cairo

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

Cape

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

ceiling

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

chanted

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

damned

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

desk-chair

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

dreamnounUS /driːm/

A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

dreamily

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

dreaming

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

drewnounUS /drew/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

ears

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

enterprises

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

exclamation

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

fixedly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

floor

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

footnounUS /foot/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

half-recumbent

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

impatiently

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

leaned

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

loud

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

man

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

out

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The words were almost spat out.

pioneer

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

position

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

Rhodes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

row

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

rude

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

shared

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

slowly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

South

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

spat

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The words were almost spat out.

straightened

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading At the rude exclamation, Byng straightened himself, and looked fixedly at his visitor.

talking

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

up

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

visitor

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

WAY

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE APPIAN WAY "Cape to Cairo be damned!"

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading The words were almost spat out.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

whileconjunctionUS /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading He had been dreaming out loud again the dream which Rhodes had chanted in the ears of all those who shared with him the pioneer enterprises of South Africa.

whompronounUS /huːm/

the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading The man to whom they were addressed slowly drew himself up from a half-recumbent position in his desk-chair, from which he had been dreamily talking into the ceiling, as it were, while his visitor leaned against a row of bookshelves and beat the floor impatiently with his foot.

words

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The words were almost spat out.