Chapter II of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold, “The Mystery Boys Add a Member,” is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter II of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold, “The Mystery Boys Add a Member,” is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab. Cliff stopped. “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!” He put the letter behind him. They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
Chapter II of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold, “The Mystery Boys Add a Member,” is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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.
past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
past form of “challenge” — take exception to
From this reading ““Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!””
a steep high face of rock
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
escape, either physically or mentally
From this reading “They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.”
take hold of so as to seize or restrain or stop the motion of
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
a native or inhabitant of Peru
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
plural of “stranger” — anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
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 ““Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!””
bring forth, usually something desirable
In this reading “As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.”
In this reading “They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude 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 As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading He put the letter behind him.
the two together, not just one
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
past form of “challenge” — take exception to
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
a steep high face of rock
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
escape, either physically or mentally
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
take hold of so as to seize or restrain or stop the motion of
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He put the letter behind him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
a native or inhabitant of Peru
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
the particular portion of space occupied by something
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He put the letter behind him.
cut with a saw
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Cliff stopped.
plural of “stranger” — anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
up to a particular time
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading They saw that on the steps he was in a position to turn and elude them.
in the company of; together with
From this reading As Cliff came up the steps with his Peruvian letter both strangers acted together; each made a grab.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Look here!” he challenged, “You wait until I open this!”
Chapter 2 of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold by Van Powell holds 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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 2 holds 90 sentences of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold by Van Powell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 2 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 Boys and the Inca Gold by Van Powell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3248 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52683 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52683, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 270 minutes of reading across 650 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Mystery Boys and the Inca Gold 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 Boys and the Inca Gold, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
