Chapter 3 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling? It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.” Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan. “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good. Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
Chapter 3 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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 author whose works were frequently autobiographical (1876-1941)
From this reading “Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.”
a refrigerator for cooling liquids
From this reading “It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.””
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading “Who ‘s likely to pass this way?””
the officer below the master on a commercial ship
From this reading ““Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?”
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading ““So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.”
past form of “struggle” — make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading “Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.”
the act of going from one place to another
From this reading ““Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?”
in a weary manner
From this reading “Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.”
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 It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
United States author whose works were frequently autobiographical (1876-1941)
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
the past participle of “be”
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
a refrigerator for cooling liquids
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
immediately past
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
the act of departing
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
the officer below the master on a commercial ship
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
go across or through
From this reading Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading It’s a little cooler now, and it ‘s getting late.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
past form of “struggle” — make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
the act of going from one place to another
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “So you ‘ve been leaving a last message,” he said; “I ‘m afraid it’s not much good.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
in a weary manner
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Anderson struggled to his feet wearily and then went down to the salt-pan.
which person or people
From this reading Who ‘s likely to pass this way?”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Mate,” he said, “don’t you think we’d better be travelling?
Chapter 3 of The Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt holds 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 3 holds 429 sentences of The Moving Finger, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 3 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 Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3046 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21335 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21335, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 253 minutes of reading across 610 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Moving Finger section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Moving Finger 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 Moving Finger, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
