Chapter 24 of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIV
Chapter 24 of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand! "I am going home," I said. "Where are you staying? At the inn?" She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
Chapter 24 of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
marked by strong resentment or cynicism
From this reading “She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.”
a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
From this reading “At the inn?"”
the branches of medical science that deal with nonsurgical techniques
From this reading “Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!”
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading “Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!”
having a point
From this reading “She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.”
a person who is the aim of an attack (especially a victim of ridicule or exploitation) by some hostile person or influence
From this reading “She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.”
-ing form of “stay” — stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading “"Where are you staying?”
performs some wicked deed
From this reading “Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!”
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.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am going home," I said.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Where are you staying?
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At the inn?"
marked by strong resentment or cynicism
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
Not remembered; lapsed from memory.
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
the act of departing
From this reading "I am going home," I said.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading "I am going home," I said.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
From this reading At the inn?"
the sound of laughing
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
the branches of medical science that deal with nonsurgical techniques
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
having a point
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
a person who is the aim of an attack (especially a victim of ridicule or exploitation) by some hostile person or influence
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I am going home," I said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
-ing form of “stay” — stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading "Where are you staying?
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She laughed her bitter laugh, and pointed to the stone quarry.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
in or at the place that
From this reading "Where are you staying?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
performs some wicked deed
From this reading Miserable wretch that I was, I had forgotten my mother--with the medicine in my hand!
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Where are you staying?
Chapter 24 of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English by Julian [Editor] Hawthorne holds 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 24 holds 204 sentences of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 24 of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English by Julian [Editor] Hawthorne exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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.
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Yes. All 8025 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2038 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2038, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1605 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Lock and Key Library — Modern English section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Lock and Key Library — Modern English 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 Lock and Key Library — Modern English, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
