Chapter 12 of The Lords of High Decision is here in full — 54 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Lords of High Decision is here in full — 54 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place? Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock. The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired. “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.” “What’s that?” demanded Wayne.
Chapter 12 of The Lords of High Decision is here in full — 54 sentences across 11 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/10 · 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.
gotten through environmental forces
From this reading “The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.”
a man paid to drive a privately owned car
From this reading “Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.”
A hot glowing body of ignited gas produced by fire.
From this reading “THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?”
large luxurious car; usually driven by a chauffeur
From this reading “Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.”
a hypothetical description of a complex entity or process
From this reading “The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.”
an open automobile having a front seat and a rumble seat
From this reading “The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.”
United States film actor who played tough heroes (1907-1979)
From this reading “Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.”
possessive form of “year” — a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
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.
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 The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
gotten through environmental forces
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
a man paid to drive a privately owned car
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading “What’s that?” demanded Wayne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
being one more than seven
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.”
A hot glowing body of ignited gas produced by fire.
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
and nothing more
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
large luxurious car; usually driven by a chauffeur
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
a hypothetical description of a complex entity or process
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
according to the clock
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
having a systematic arrangement; especially having elements succeeding in order according to rule
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
an open automobile having a front seat and a rumble seat
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
plural of “shadow” — shade within clear boundaries
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
do one's shopping
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE SHADOWS AGAINST THE FLAME “Do I know the place?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
United States film actor who played tough heroes (1907-1979)
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What’s that?” demanded Wayne.
at the time that
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Sure!” said Joe Denny when Wayne ordered the chauffeur to be ready with the limousine at eight o’clock.
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “He’s the wonder, this Father Jim.”
possessive form of “year” — a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading The runabout was in the shop and the limousine was a next year’s model that Wayne had just acquired.
Chapter 12 of The Lords of High Decision by Meredith Nicholson holds 54 sentences, grouped into 11 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 12 holds 54 sentences of The Lords of High Decision, unabridged, divided into 11 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Lords of High Decision by Meredith Nicholson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 54 sentences, grouped into 11 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 11 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 11 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 12 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 Lords of High Decision by Meredith Nicholson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7065 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66455 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66455, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 588 minutes of reading across 1413 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Lords of High Decision section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Lords of High Decision 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 Lords of High Decision, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
