Chapter 16 of The mystery at lovers' cave is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of The mystery at lovers' cave is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them. “Well, well, that’s interesting. May I have a look at that shoe?” They wheeled round, startled. Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
Chapter 16 of The mystery at lovers' cave is here in full — 140 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
Roman general under Julius Caesar in the Gallic wars; repudiated his wife for the Egyptian queen Cleopatra; they were defeated by Octavian at Actium (83-30 BC)
From this reading “Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.”
superlative of “big” — above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
past form of “glare” — look at with a fixed gaze
From this reading “Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.”
a high ranking police officer
From this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
third-person singular of “intervene” — get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force
From this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
footwear shaped to fit the foot (below the ankle) with a flexible upper of leather or plastic and a sole and heel of heavier material
From this reading “May I have a look at that shoe?””
past form of “stiffen” — become stiff or stiffer
From this reading “Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.”
having wheels; often used in combination
From this reading “They wheeled round, startled.”
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 “They wheeled round, startled.”
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “May I have a look at that shoe?””
In this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
pursue or resume
In this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
In this reading “Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.”
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 Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
Roman general under Julius Caesar in the Gallic wars; repudiated his wife for the Egyptian queen Cleopatra; they were defeated by Octavian at Actium (83-30 BC)
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
at or toward the back of something
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
superlative of “big” — above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
an occurrence of something
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
past form of “glare” — look at with a fixed gaze
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
inflected form of “grin” — to draw back the lips and reveal the teeth, in a smile, grimace, or snarl
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
a high ranking police officer
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
arousing or holding the attention
From this reading “Well, well, that’s interesting.
third-person singular of “intervene” — get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading They wheeled round, startled.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
footwear shaped to fit the foot (below the ankle) with a flexible upper of leather or plastic and a sole and heel of heavier material
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
from a time in the past until now
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
term of address for a man
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading They wheeled round, startled.
past form of “stiffen” — become stiff or stiffer
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading May I have a look at that shoe?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then Anthony glared, Margaret stiffened and Roger grinned.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They wheeled round, startled.
a special situation
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Well, well, that’s interesting.
having wheels; often used in combination
From this reading They wheeled round, startled.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Inspector Moresby Intervenes “The biggest thing that’s happened since you took up the case, is it, sir?” said a voice behind them.
Chapter 16 of The mystery at lovers' cave by Anthony Berkeley holds 140 sentences, grouped into 28 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 16 holds 140 sentences of The mystery at lovers' cave, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of The mystery at lovers' cave by Anthony Berkeley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 140 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 16 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 mystery at lovers' cave by Anthony Berkeley on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5292 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #70877 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #70877, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 441 minutes of reading across 1059 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The mystery at lovers' cave section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The mystery at lovers' cave 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 mystery at lovers' cave, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
