Chapter 15 of The Last Penny is here in full — 305 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of The Last Penny is here in full — 305 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning. “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt. Thompson stopped and shook hands. “I want to get off some letters. Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
Chapter 15 of The Last Penny is here in full — 305 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/61 · 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.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
feeling or showing gratitude
From this reading ““How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.”
the literary culture
From this reading ““I want to get off some letters.”
the second day of the week; the first working day
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
United States classical archaeologist (born in Canada) noted for leading the excavation of the Athenian agora (1906-2000)
From this reading “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
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 “TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.”
In this reading “Thompson stopped and shook hands.”
leave a vehicle, aircraft, etc.
In this reading ““I want to get off some letters.”
In this reading ““I want to get off some letters.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Thompson stopped and shook hands.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
like a boy
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
feeling or showing gratitude
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Thompson stopped and shook hands.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
the literary culture
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
the second day of the week; the first working day
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
a form of address for a man
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading Thompson stopped and shook hands.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Thompson stopped and shook hands.
express in words
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
United States classical archaeologist (born in Canada) noted for leading the excavation of the Athenian agora (1906-2000)
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
hard to endure
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading “I want to get off some letters.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
at the time that
From this reading TOMMY was at his old desk in the outer office when Thompson arrived on Monday morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tell Miss Hollins I need her, won't you?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “How do you do, Mr. Thompson?” said Tommy, boyishly trying not to look as grateful as he felt.
Chapter 15 of The Last Penny by Edwin Lefevre holds 305 sentences, grouped into 61 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 15 holds 305 sentences of The Last Penny, unabridged, divided into 61 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of The Last Penny by Edwin Lefevre exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 305 sentences, grouped into 61 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 61 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 61 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 15 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 Penny by Edwin Lefevre on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4946 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51966 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51966, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 412 minutes of reading across 990 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Last Penny section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Last Penny 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 Penny, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
