Chapter 23 of The Motor Boys Overland is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Motor Boys Overland is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE CHASE. Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood. "The auto can do what we can't," he said. "What do you mean?" came from Jerry. "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
Chapter 23 of The Motor Boys Overland is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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.
a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading “"The auto can do what we can't," he said.”
go after with the intent to catch
From this reading “THE CHASE.”
a steep high face of rock
From this reading “"I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"”
past form of “crank” — travel along a zigzag path
From this reading “Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.”
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading “Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.”
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading “Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.”
cause to move by pulling
From this reading “"I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"”
past form of “steer” — direct the course; determine the direction of travelling
From this reading “Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.”
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 “Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.”
In this reading “"I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"”
In this reading “"What do you mean?" came from Jerry.”
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 Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "What do you mean?" came from Jerry.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
go after with the intent to catch
From this reading THE CHASE.
a steep high face of rock
From this reading "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
past form of “crank” — travel along a zigzag path
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "What do you mean?" came from Jerry.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "What do you mean?" came from Jerry.
the force of workers available
From this reading "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
above and across; more than
From this reading "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
cause to move by pulling
From this reading "I mean it can pull the men up over the cliff!"
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
past form of “steer” — direct the course; determine the direction of travelling
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE CHASE.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "The auto can do what we can't," he said.
in or at the place that
From this reading Ned reached the machine, cranked it up, and a few minutes later steered it close to where Bob and Jerry stood.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "What do you mean?" came from Jerry.
Chapter 23 of The Motor Boys Overland by Clarence Young holds 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 holds 114 sentences of The Motor Boys Overland, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Motor Boys Overland by Clarence Young exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 23 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 Motor Boys Overland by Clarence Young on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3701 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #42748 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #42748, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 308 minutes of reading across 741 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Motor Boys Overland section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of The Motor Boys Overland 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 Motor Boys Overland, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
