Chapter 1 of The Motormaniacs is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Motormaniacs is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Gerard didn't say a word. He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation. "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last. 'I thought I was going to take care of her always. It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
Chapter 1 of The Motormaniacs is here in full — 504 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 65/100 · 5 reading units · Lines 321–325
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.
lack of normal development of intellectual capacities
From this reading “He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.”
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading “He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.”
past form of “blurt” — utter impulsively
From this reading “"'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.”
the quality of being unlike or dissimilar
From this reading “It is going to make a great difference in my life.'”
indecision in speech or action
From this reading “He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.”
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading “He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.”
and nothing more
From this reading “He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.”
not expected or anticipated
From this reading “"'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.”
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 Gerard didn't say a word.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
lack of normal development of intellectual capacities
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
past form of “blurt” — utter impulsively
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gerard didn't say a word.
the quality of being unlike or dissimilar
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gerard didn't say a word.
the act of departing
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
indecision in speech or action
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
immediately past
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
engage in
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading It is going to make a great difference in my life.'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
express in words
From this reading Gerard didn't say a word.
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
and nothing more
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
carry out
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
in or at that place or location
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading 'I thought I was going to take care of her always.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
not expected or anticipated
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
precisely as stated
From this reading "'It's very unexpected,' he blurted out at last.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He simply looked and looked, and there was something beautiful to me in his shame and backwardness and hesitation.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading Gerard didn't say a word.
Chapter 1 of The Motormaniacs by Lloyd Osbourne holds 504 sentences, grouped into 101 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 1 holds 504 sentences of The Motormaniacs, unabridged, divided into 101 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Motormaniacs by Lloyd Osbourne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 504 sentences, grouped into 101 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 101 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 101 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 1 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 Motormaniacs by Lloyd Osbourne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1963 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5626 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5626, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 163 minutes of reading across 393 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Motormaniacs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Motormaniacs 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 Motormaniacs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
