Chapter X of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story, “A Speaking Likeness,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter X of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story, “A Speaking Likeness,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied. For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech. "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length. "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?" "No, I am not mistaken.
Chapter X of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story, “A Speaking Likeness,” is here in full — 107 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading “"You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"”
unhappy in love; suffering from unrequited love
From this reading “For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.”
something acquired without compensation
From this reading “For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.”
beyond belief or understanding
From this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
past form of “manage” — be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
wrong in e.g. opinion or judgment
From this reading “"You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"”
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
speak haltingly
From this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
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.
In this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
in a lengthy or prolix manner
In this reading “"It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.”
In this reading “"You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"”
temporarily
In this reading “For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.”
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 moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "No, I am not mistaken.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
unhappy in love; suffering from unrequited love
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
definite but not specified or identified
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
something acquired without compensation
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "No, I am not mistaken.
beyond belief or understanding
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
past form of “manage” — be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
wrong in e.g. opinion or judgment
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
a particular point in time
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, I am not mistaken.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
speak haltingly
From this reading "It sounds almost incredible," he managed to stammer at length.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading For a moment or two he seemed to be bereft of the gift of speech.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was some little time before Lord Ravenspur replied.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You are absolutely certain you are not mistaken?"
Chapter 10 of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White holds 107 sentences, grouped into 22 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 10 holds 107 sentences of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 107 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 10 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 Midnight Guest: A Detective Story by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6016 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56960 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56960, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 501 minutes of reading across 1204 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Midnight Guest: A Detective Story 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 Midnight Guest: A Detective Story, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
