Chapter 17 of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs. His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth. His face was dominant, but not cruel. He never petted a dog. On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
Chapter 17 of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
the process of paying close and continuous attention
From this reading “His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.”
exercising influence or control
From this reading “His face was dominant, but not cruel.”
someone who organizes an exhibit for others to see
From this reading “James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.”
a .45-caliber pistol
From this reading “His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.”
the performance of a part or role in a drama
From this reading “James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.”
inflected form of “pet” — stroke or caress gently
From this reading “He never petted a dog.”
past form of “thrash” — give a thrashing to; beat hard
From this reading “On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.”
one who trains other persons or animals
From this reading “James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.”
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 “On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.”
In this reading “His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.”
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 James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
how long something has existed
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
the process of paying close and continuous attention
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
carefully weighed
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading His face was dominant, but not cruel.
properly deserved
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading He never petted a dog.
plural of “dog” — a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
exercising influence or control
From this reading His face was dominant, but not cruel.
someone who organizes an exhibit for others to see
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading His face was dominant, but not cruel.
a .45-caliber pistol
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
in motion
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He never petted a dog.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading His face was dominant, but not cruel.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
the performance of a part or role in a drama
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
inflected form of “pet” — stroke or caress gently
From this reading He never petted a dog.
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
any distinct time period in a sequence of events
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
tending to suggest or imply
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
past form of “thrash” — give a thrashing to; beat hard
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
one who trains other persons or animals
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
except if; if not
From this reading On the other hand, he never thrashed a dog, unless he considered that the dog had deserved it.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading James Smith was a trainer and exhibitor of performing dogs.
in the company of; together with
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading His age was forty-five, but on the stage he looked less, moving always with an alertness suggestive of youth.
Chapter 17 of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories by Barry Pain holds 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 17 holds 130 sentences of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories by Barry Pain exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 17 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 New Gulliver, and Other Stories by Barry Pain on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4196 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33542 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33542, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 349 minutes of reading across 840 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The New Gulliver, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of The New Gulliver, and Other Stories 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 New Gulliver, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
