Chapter 20 of The Missing Tin Box is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Missing Tin Box is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FOLLOWING ALLEN. Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs. "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth. "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe. "I don't know.
Chapter 20 of The Missing Tin Box is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading “FOLLOWING ALLEN.”
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
someone who is a detective
From this reading “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading “FOLLOWING ALLEN.”
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
a run-down apartment house barely meeting minimal standards
From this reading “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading “"He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.”
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 “Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.”
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.
United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading FOLLOWING ALLEN.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
someone who is a detective
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't know.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading FOLLOWING ALLEN.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't know.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "I don't know.
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
a run-down apartment house barely meeting minimal standards
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Hal was astonished to learn from Katie McCabe that Dick Ferris was coming up the tenement stairs.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What shall we do if he does?" asked McCabe.
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading "He can't be coming here!" exclaimed the youth.
Chapter 20 of The Missing Tin Box by Edward Stratemeyer holds 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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 20 holds 165 sentences of The Missing Tin Box, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Missing Tin Box by Edward Stratemeyer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 20 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 Missing Tin Box by Edward Stratemeyer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4507 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30864 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30864, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 375 minutes of reading across 902 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Missing Tin Box section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Missing Tin 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 Missing Tin Box, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
