Chapter 1 of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather. _Oct. 26_. I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode. I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
Chapter 1 of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 71/82 · 5 reading units · Lines 351–355
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.
plural of “cable” — a telegram sent abroad
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
suited to your comfort or purpose or needs
From this reading “I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.”
secured with bastions or fortifications
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
-ing form of “intend” — have in mind as a purpose
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
bordered by a line of things
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
the month following September and preceding November
venous swelling external or internal to the anal sphincter
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
surface layer of ground containing a mat of grass and grass roots
From this reading “I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 26_.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
any address at which you dwell more than temporarily
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
plural of “cable” — a telegram sent abroad
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
suited to your comfort or purpose or needs
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
overlaid or spread or topped with or enclosed within something; sometimes used as a combining form
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
construct, build, or erect
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
secured with bastions or fortifications
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
plural of “good” — benefit
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
the crescent-shaped area at the base of the human fingernail
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
weather unsuitable for outdoor activities
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
-ing form of “intend” — have in mind as a purpose
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
bordered by a line of things
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
strongly marked; easily noticeable
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
the month following September and preceding November
From this reading _Oct.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
plural of “piece” — a separate part of a whole
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
venous swelling external or internal to the anal sphincter
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
past form of “secure” — get by special effort
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
surface layer of ground containing a mat of grass and grass roots
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
past form of “wander” — move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading This day I secured my goods from the inclemency of the weather.
in or at the place that
From this reading I wandered to see where I could find a place convenient for my abode.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading I fixed upon a rock in the evening, marked out a half-moon, intending to erect a wall, fortified with piles, lined within with pieces of cables, and covered with turf.
Chapter 1 of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures by Daniel Defoe holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 1 holds 411 sentences of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Life and Most Surprising Adventures by Daniel Defoe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 1 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.
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Yes. All 2877 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #11866 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #11866, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 239 minutes of reading across 576 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in The Life and Most Surprising Adventures, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
