Chapter 18 of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I AM PUT IN IRONS. I was thoroughly dismayed. All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless. He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner. Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
Chapter 18 of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
towards the shore from the water
From this reading “Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.”
with bitterness; in a resentful manner
From this reading “Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.”
plural of “chance” — a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading “Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.”
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading “I was thoroughly dismayed.”
metal shackles; for hands or legs
From this reading “I AM PUT IN IRONS.”
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading “All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.”
inflected form of “regret” — feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about
From this reading “Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.”
having no beneficial use or incapable of functioning usefully
From this reading “All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.”
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.
on a ship, train, plane or other vehicle
In this reading “He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.”
In this reading “I AM PUT IN IRONS.”
place, fit, or thrust (something) into another thing
In this reading “I AM PUT IN IRONS.”
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 He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
(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 All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I AM PUT IN IRONS.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
towards the shore from the water
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
with bitterness; in a resentful manner
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
a committee having supervisory powers
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
plural of “chance” — a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading I was thoroughly dismayed.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I AM PUT IN IRONS.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I AM PUT IN IRONS.
metal shackles; for hands or legs
From this reading I AM PUT IN IRONS.
set down according to a plan
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
plural of “plan” — a series of steps to be carried out or goals to be accomplished
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading I AM PUT IN IRONS.
inflected form of “regret” — feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading He was left behind and I was on board little better than a prisoner.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
in an exhaustive manner
From this reading I was thoroughly dismayed.
having no beneficial use or incapable of functioning usefully
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was thoroughly dismayed.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading All the plans the lawyer and myself had laid were now useless.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Bitterly I regretted not having taken the chances of getting ashore without being observed.
Chapter 18 of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire by Edward Stratemeyer holds 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 18 holds 172 sentences of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire by Edward Stratemeyer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 18 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 Last Cruise of the Spitfire by Edward Stratemeyer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3938 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34367 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34367, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 328 minutes of reading across 788 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Last Cruise of the Spitfire section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of The Last Cruise of the Spitfire 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 Last Cruise of the Spitfire, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
