Chapter 4 of The Letter of the Contract is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Letter of the Contract is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"All right. I'm willing to accept the word. It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same." "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it." Chip smiled ruefully.
Chapter 4 of The Letter of the Contract is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
consider or hold as true
From this reading “I'm willing to accept the word.”
a small fragment of something broken off from the whole
From this reading “Chip smiled ruefully.”
any place of pain and turmoil
From this reading “It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."”
the act that results in something coming to be
From this reading “It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."”
in a rueful manner
From this reading “Chip smiled ruefully.”
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading “Chip smiled ruefully.”
devote oneself entirely to something; indulge in to an immoderate degree, usually with pleasure
From this reading “"But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."”
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading “I'm willing to accept the word.”
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 It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
consider or hold as true
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "All right.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
a small fragment of something broken off from the whole
From this reading Chip smiled ruefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
divisible by two
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
any place of pain and turmoil
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
and nothing more
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
the act that results in something coming to be
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
have ownership or possession of
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
precisely, exactly
From this reading "All right.
in a rueful manner
From this reading Chip smiled ruefully.
Identical; not different.
From this reading It's a hell of _my_ own making--but it's hell, just the same."
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Chip smiled ruefully.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
devote oneself entirely to something; indulge in to an immoderate degree, usually with pleasure
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading I'm willing to accept the word.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "But, good Lord! man, even if it is hell, you don't want to wallow in it."
Chapter 4 of The Letter of the Contract by Basil King holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 4 holds 404 sentences of The Letter of the Contract, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Letter of the Contract by Basil King exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 4 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 Letter of the Contract by Basil King on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2791 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20443 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #20443, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 232 minutes of reading across 559 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Letter of the Contract section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Letter of the Contract 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 Letter of the Contract, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
