Chapter 5 of The Last Ditch is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Last Ditch is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I came with you from Shanghai four days ago. We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused. Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement. The spy had a fertile mind. These things were a part of his work.
Chapter 5 of The Last Ditch is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
pleasantly occupied
From this reading “We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.”
the thing arranged or agreed to
From this reading “Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.”
accomplishment of an objective
From this reading “We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.”
past form of “avoid” — stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something
From this reading “Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.”
capable of reproducing
From this reading “The spy had a fertile mind.”
the largest city of China; located in the east on the Pacific; one of the largest ports in the world
From this reading “"I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.”
catch sight of
From this reading “The spy had a fertile mind.”
in a studious manner
From this reading “Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.”
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.
In this reading “"I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.”
In this reading “We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.”
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 spy had a fertile mind.
in the past
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
pleasantly occupied
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the thing arranged or agreed to
From this reading Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.
accomplishment of an objective
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
past form of “avoid” — stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something
From this reading Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
capable of reproducing
From this reading The spy had a fertile mind.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
to or at a greater extent or degree or a more advanced stage (“further” is used more often than “farther” in this abstract sense)
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading The spy had a fertile mind.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the largest city of China; located in the east on the Pacific; one of the largest ports in the world
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
catch sight of
From this reading The spy had a fertile mind.
in a studious manner
From this reading Minglapo had been studiously avoided in the arrangement.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We have been in the country since arrival—" Romney was further amused.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading These things were a part of his work.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I came with you from Shanghai four days ago.
Chapter 5 of The Last Ditch by Will Levington Comfort holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 5 holds 409 sentences of The Last Ditch, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Last Ditch by Will Levington Comfort exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 5 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 Ditch by Will Levington Comfort on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5223 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46152 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46152, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 435 minutes of reading across 1045 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Last Ditch section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Last Ditch 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 Ditch, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
