Chapter 27 of The Last of the Flatboats is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of The Last of the Flatboats is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed. It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water. As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees. He instantly aroused his companions. “The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.
Chapter 27 of The Last of the Flatboats is here in full — 129 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
subject to appointment
From this reading “A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.”
aroused to action
From this reading “He instantly aroused his companions.”
a long trough for feeding cattle
From this reading “It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.”
plural of “companion” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading “He instantly aroused his companions.”
a statement that makes something comprehensible by describing the relevant structure or operation or circumstances etc.
From this reading ““The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.”
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading “It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.”
a descent as through liquid (especially through water)
From this reading ““The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.”
make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading “A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.”
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.
move out of or depart from
In this reading “It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.”
In this reading “As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.”
In this reading “A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.”
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 A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
subject to appointment
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
aroused to action
From this reading He instantly aroused his companions.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading “The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.
a long trough for feeding cattle
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
plural of “companion” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading He instantly aroused his companions.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
take in liquids
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
a statement that makes something comprehensible by describing the relevant structure or operation or circumstances etc.
From this reading “The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading He instantly aroused his companions.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
a descent as through liquid (especially through water)
From this reading “The boat is sinking,” was his explanation.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK But Phil was up long before the hour appointed.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading As he did so he stepped into water half way up to his knees.
at the time that
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
but in spite of that
From this reading It was not yet midnight when he got out of his bunk to get a drink of water.
Chapter 27 of The Last of the Flatboats by George Cary Eggleston holds 129 sentences, grouped into 26 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 27 holds 129 sentences of The Last of the Flatboats, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of The Last of the Flatboats by George Cary Eggleston exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 129 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 27 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 of the Flatboats by George Cary Eggleston on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3771 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44922 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44922, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 314 minutes of reading across 755 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Last of the Flatboats section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The Last of the Flatboats 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 of the Flatboats, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
