Chapter 33 of The Light of the Western Stars is here in full — 232 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIII
Chapter 33 of The Light of the Western Stars is here in full — 232 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Then there was a blank silence. The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted. Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness. “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly. The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
Chapter 33 of The Light of the Western Stars is here in full — 232 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/46 · 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.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading ““What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.”
(of a surface) not written or printed on
From this reading “Then there was a blank silence.”
marked by breaks or gaps
From this reading “The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.”
the pleasure felt when having a good time
From this reading “The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.”
become less clearly visible or distinguishable; disappear gradually or seemingly
From this reading “Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.”
the property of being rigid and resistant to pressure; not easily scratched; measured on Mohs scale
From this reading “Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.”
in an impolite manner
From this reading “The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.”
in a stupid manner
From this reading ““What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.”
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 Then there was a blank silence.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
(of a surface) not written or printed on
From this reading Then there was a blank silence.
an orange of low brightness and saturation
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
marked by breaks or gaps
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
the pleasure felt when having a good time
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
become less clearly visible or distinguishable; disappear gradually or seemingly
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
well known or easily recognized
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
the property of being rigid and resistant to pressure; not easily scratched; measured on Mohs scale
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
plural of “line” — a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
a particular point in time
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
a fundamental feeling that is hard to define but that people desire to experience
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
done or occurring in a brief period of time
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
on the contrary
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
in an impolite manner
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading Then there was a blank silence.
in a stupid manner
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The enjoyment of the moment had been rudely disrupted.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then there was a blank silence.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Then there was a blank silence.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Madeline glanced down the lines of brown faces to see the pleasure fade into the old familiar hardness.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading The change of mood had been too rapid for him.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Then there was a blank silence.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading “What’s wrong?” asked Alfred, rather stupidly.
Chapter 33 of The Light of the Western Stars by Zane Grey holds 232 sentences, grouped into 47 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 33 holds 232 sentences of The Light of the Western Stars, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 33 of The Light of the Western Stars by Zane Grey exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 232 sentences, grouped into 47 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 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 47 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 33 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 Light of the Western Stars by Zane Grey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9623 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1095 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1095, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1925 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Light of the Western Stars section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Light of the Western Stars 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 Light of the Western Stars, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
