Chapter 4 of The Martian is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Martian is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed. For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound. At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door. He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob. He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
Chapter 4 of The Martian is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/41 · 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.
the bodily process of inhalation and exhalation; the process of taking in oxygen from inhaled air and releasing carbon dioxide by exhalation
From this reading “The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.”
a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals
From this reading “The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.”
a solid bounded by a cylindrical surface and two parallel planes (the bases)
From this reading “At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.”
talk socially without exchanging too much information
From this reading “He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....”
a circular rounded projection or protuberance
From this reading “He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.”
fasten with a lock
From this reading “He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.”
any of several chemical elements that are usually shiny solids that conduct heat or electricity and can be formed into sheets etc.
From this reading “He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.”
in a tight or constricted manner
From this reading “He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....”
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.
a prolonged period of time
In this reading “For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.”
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 For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
the bodily process of inhalation and exhalation; the process of taking in oxygen from inhaled air and releasing carbon dioxide by exhalation
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
inflected form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
a solid bounded by a cylindrical surface and two parallel planes (the bases)
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
having the pinkish flush of health
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
talk socially without exchanging too much information
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
a circular rounded projection or protuberance
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
immediately past
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
fasten with a lock
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
any of several chemical elements that are usually shiny solids that conduct heat or electricity and can be formed into sheets etc.
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
in motion
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
not any; not one
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
compacted by ironing
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
located or moved above the surround or above the normal position
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
not in physical motion
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
in a tight or constricted manner
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading At last, moving very slowly, he carried his cylinder to the door.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading He pressed his lips tightly together, and set his jaw....
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading He raised it, and placed the point against the metal lock, under the knob.
precisely as stated
From this reading For a long time he sat very still and listened, but he heard no sound.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The Circus He was breathing hard now, and his face was flushed.
Chapter 4 of The Martian by A. R. (Alec Rowley) Hilliard holds 207 sentences, grouped into 42 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 4 holds 207 sentences of The Martian, unabridged, divided into 42 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Martian by A. R. (Alec Rowley) Hilliard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 207 sentences, grouped into 42 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 42 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 42 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 4 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 Martian by A. R. (Alec Rowley) Hilliard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 902 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40992 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40992, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 75 minutes of reading across 181 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Martian section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The Martian 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 Martian, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
