Chapter 31 of The Judgment House is here in full — 226 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXI
Chapter 31 of The Judgment House is here in full — 226 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight. The camp was sleeping. The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night. There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom. They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
Chapter 31 of The Judgment House is here in full — 226 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/45 · 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.
the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists
From this reading “The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.”
plural of “force” — a powerful effect or influence
From this reading “The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.”
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading “There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.”
(formerly) a cavalryman armed with a lance
From this reading “They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.”
plural of “nest” — a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
From this reading “They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.”
a traveler who actively rides an animal (as a horse or camel)
From this reading “THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.”
abounding with or resembling stars
From this reading “The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.”
slow and apathetic
From this reading “The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.”
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 There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers
From this reading The camp was sleeping.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
the organ of sight
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
plural of “force” — a powerful effect or influence
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
(formerly) a cavalryman armed with a lance
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
the natural satellite of the Earth
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
plural of “nest” — a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
select carefully from a group
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
(of pain or sorrow) made easier to bear
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
a traveler who actively rides an animal (as a horse or camel)
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
the state of being asleep
From this reading The camp was sleeping.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
abounding with or resembling stars
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
plural of “star” — (astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no moon, but the stars gave a light that relieved the gloom.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
slow and apathetic
From this reading The forces of destruction lay torpid in the starry shadow of the night.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE GREY HORSE AND ITS RIDER It was almost midnight.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They were so near to the eye that it might seem a lancer could pick them from their nests of blue.
Chapter 31 of The Judgment House by Gilbert Parker holds 226 sentences, grouped into 46 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 31 holds 226 sentences of The Judgment House, unabridged, divided into 46 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 31 of The Judgment House by Gilbert Parker exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 226 sentences, grouped into 46 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 46 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 46 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 31 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 Judgment House by Gilbert Parker on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8871 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3746 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3746, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1775 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Judgment House section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of The Judgment House 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 Judgment House, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
