Chapter 11 of The Man on the Box is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Man on the Box is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?" XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!" Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances. To lie now would be folly, worse than useless. He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
Chapter 11 of The Man on the Box is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
-ing form of “adapt” — make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose
From this reading “Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.”
a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table
From this reading “XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"”
possessive form of “gentleman” — a man of refinement
From this reading “"Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"”
past form of “lack” — be without
From this reading “Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.”
a commissioned military officer
From this reading “"Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"”
a form of address for a man
From this reading “XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"”
the act of selling goods for a living
From this reading “"Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"”
liquid food especially of meat or fish or vegetable stock often containing pieces of solid food
From this reading “"Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"”
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 "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
-ing form of “adapt” — make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
(of mail) marked with a destination
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table
From this reading XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"
showing who or what does the action
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
the trait of acting stupidly or rashly
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
possessive form of “gentleman” — a man of refinement
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
something acquired without compensation
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
past form of “lack” — be without
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
a commissioned military officer
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
of or relating to the study of the principles of warfare
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
a form of address for a man
From this reading XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
the act of selling goods for a living
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
not widely known; especially valued for its uncommonness
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
liquid food especially of meat or fish or vegetable stock often containing pieces of solid food
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
a heading that names a statute or legislative bill; may give a brief summary of the matters it deals with
From this reading He had addressed this man at his side by his military title.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Warburton had never lacked that rare and peculiar gift of immediately adapting himself to circumstances.
having no beneficial use or incapable of functioning usefully
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Warburton, what the devil does this mean--a lieutenant of mine peddling soup around a gentleman's table?"
(comparative of “bad”) inferior to another in quality or condition or desirability
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading To lie now would be folly, worse than useless.
the cardinal number that is the sum of eighteen and one
From this reading XIX "OH, MISTER BUTLER!"
Chapter 11 of The Man on the Box by Harold MacGrath holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 11 holds 406 sentences of The Man on the Box, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Man on the Box by Harold MacGrath exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 11 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 Man on the Box by Harold MacGrath on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5683 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6578 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6578, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 473 minutes of reading across 1137 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Man on the Box section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Man on the Box 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 Man on the Box, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
