Chapter 11 of The Night-Born is here in full — 220 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Night-Born is here in full — 220 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft. “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded. And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake. He dived overboard. When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
Chapter 11 of The Night-Born is here in full — 220 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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.
at or near or toward the stern of a ship or tail of an airplane
From this reading ““Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.”
in a reflex manner
From this reading “When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.”
float on the surface of water
From this reading ““Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.”
past form of “dive” — drop steeply
From this reading “He dived overboard.”
past form of “glimpse” — catch a glimpse of or see briefly
From this reading “When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.”
set afire
From this reading “When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.”
an aggressive remark directed at a person like a missile and intended to have a telling effect
From this reading ““Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.”
the right side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose
From this reading ““Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.”
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 And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake.
at or near or toward the stern of a ship or tail of an airplane
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
in a reflex manner
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake.
float on the surface of water
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
past form of “command” — be in command of
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
past form of “dive” — drop steeply
From this reading He dived overboard.
United States dancer and pioneer of modern dance (1878-1927)
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
inflected form of “fling” — throw with force or recklessness
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
past form of “glimpse” — catch a glimpse of or see briefly
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
fasten with a hook
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
set afire
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
an aggressive remark directed at a person like a missile and intended to have a telling effect
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake.
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
above and across; more than
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
to extremes
From this reading He dived overboard.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
the right side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
commonly the lowest molding at the base of a column
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Mrs. Duncan,” was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its hook and flung it aft.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
at the time that
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had ignited automatically when it struck the water.
air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure
From this reading “Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!” he commanded.
Chapter 11 of The Night-Born by Jack London holds 220 sentences, grouped into 44 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 11 holds 220 sentences of The Night-Born, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Night-Born by Jack London exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 220 sentences, grouped into 44 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 44 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 44 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 11 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 Night-Born by Jack London on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4015 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1029 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1029, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 334 minutes of reading across 803 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Night-Born section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of The Night-Born 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 Night-Born, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
