Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
The Last Two Alive!
The Last Two Alive!

Chapter II

Cover illustration for The Last Two Alive!
Context Illustration Reading 1/116 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.
The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.
Aram sat frozen before the controls.
A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.
He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Last Two Alive!

Chapter II

Reading 1/116 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.
Line 2
The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.
Line 3
Aram sat frozen before the controls.
Line 4
A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.
Line 5
He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “Aram sat frozen before the controls.”

Free adjective US /friː/

acting without enough restraint or discipline

From this reading “He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.”

Mind noun US /mind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.”

Second noun US /second/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.”

Sure noun US /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.”

All words in this reading · 52

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

AdeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

Ahead

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

answers

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

any

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

Aram

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Aram sat frozen before the controls.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading Aram sat frozen before the controls.

burned

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

careened

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

Cluster

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

controls

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Aram sat frozen before the controls.

couldn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

flanks

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

freeadjectiveUS /friː/

acting without enough restraint or discipline

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

frozen

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Aram sat frozen before the controls.

gotten

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/

belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

lay

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

locks

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

metal

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

Mikal

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

mindnounUS /mind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

questions

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

sat

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Aram sat frozen before the controls.

scraping

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

sea

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

second

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

set

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

shaft

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

shallows

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

small

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

smooth

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

Star

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

starship

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

surenounUS /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading He couldn't be sure that Mikal had gotten the Star Cluster free.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

then

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ahead lay the second set of locks and then the shallows of the sea.

there

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

thousand

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.

upward

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The small starship careened upward, scraping its flanks on the smooth metal of the shaft.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading A thousand questions burned in his mind, and there were no sure answers for any of them.