Chapter 24 of The lazy detective is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIV
Chapter 24 of The lazy detective is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable. Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest. "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl. He grinned. "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
Chapter 24 of The lazy detective is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
a vessel containing liquid in which something is immersed (as to process it or to maintain it at a constant temperature or to lubricate it)
From this reading “"Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."”
past form of “confide” — reveal in private; tell confidentially
From this reading “Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.”
a lawman with less authority and jurisdiction than a sheriff
From this reading “Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.”
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading “He grinned.”
a landowner who leases to others
From this reading “Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.”
(Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity; for 10 years while Odysseus fought the Trojan War she resisted numerous suitors until Odysseus returned and killed them
From this reading “Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.”
remove body hair with a razor
From this reading “"Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."”
not permanent; not lasting
From this reading “Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.”
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 “"Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."”
put clothing on one's body
In this reading “"Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."”
In this reading “"And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.”
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 "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
past form of “allow” — make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
a vessel containing liquid in which something is immersed (as to process it or to maintain it at a constant temperature or to lubricate it)
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
clothing in general
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
past form of “confide” — reveal in private; tell confidentially
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
a lawman with less authority and jurisdiction than a sheriff
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
any federal law-enforcement officer
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
a young female
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
the act of departing
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading He grinned.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
a manual usually accompanying a technical device and explaining how to install or operate it
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
conduct an interview in television, newspaper, and radio reporting
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
a landowner who leases to others
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
(Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity; for 10 years while Odysseus fought the Trojan War she resisted numerous suitors until Odysseus returned and killed them
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
no longer active in your work or profession
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
remove body hair with a razor
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "Have a bath and a shave and put on some decent clothes."
not permanent; not lasting
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Labar's first business was to interview the wife of his temporary landlord, the retired constable.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Into her hands he confided Penelope, with instructions that the girl was to be fed and then allowed to rest.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "And what are you going to do?" cried the girl.
Chapter 24 of The lazy detective by George Dilnot holds 177 sentences, grouped into 36 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 24 holds 177 sentences of The lazy detective, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 24 of The lazy detective by George Dilnot exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 177 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 24 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 lazy detective by George Dilnot on this page, its source edition and its audio.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The lazy detective section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The lazy detective 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 lazy detective, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
