Chapter 12 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
WITHIN AN ACE. Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram. The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came. That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack. Crackers, of course, was also present.
Chapter 12 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 137 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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 smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “WITHIN AN ACE.”
Englishman and Egyptologist who in 1922 discovered and excavated the tomb of Tutankhamen (1873-1939)
From this reading “Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.”
past form of “closet” — confine to a small space, as for intensive work
From this reading “That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.”
conduct or direct the steering of a ship or plane
From this reading “That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.”
informal or slang terms for mentally irregular
From this reading “Crackers, of course, was also present.”
having a handwritten signature
From this reading “The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.”
a shallow drum with a single drumhead and with metallic disks in the sides
From this reading “That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.”
a message transmitted by telegraph
From this reading “Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.”
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 “WITHIN AN ACE.”
In this reading “Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.”
In this reading “That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.”
as might be expected
In this reading “Crackers, of course, was also present.”
In this reading “That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.”
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 Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number
From this reading WITHIN AN ACE.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
in addition
From this reading Crackers, of course, was also present.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading WITHIN AN ACE.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
Englishman and Egyptologist who in 1922 discovered and excavated the tomb of Tutankhamen (1873-1939)
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
past form of “closet” — confine to a small space, as for intensive work
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
conduct or direct the steering of a ship or plane
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading Crackers, of course, was also present.
informal or slang terms for mentally irregular
From this reading Crackers, of course, was also present.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
a small worthless amount
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Crackers, of course, was also present.
give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading Crackers, of course, was also present.
conforming to the established language usage of educated native speakers
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
having a handwritten signature
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
a shallow drum with a single drumhead and with metallic disks in the sides
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
a message transmitted by telegraph
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Two days later Nick Carter received a telegram.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The message was signed by an assumed name, but Nick knew from whom it came.
in the company of; together with
From this reading That afternoon the great detective arrived in Norwalk, Conn., and within an hour was closeted in a room in a hotel with Tambourine Jack.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading WITHIN AN ACE.
Chapter 12 of The Plot That Failed by Nicholas (House name) Carter holds 137 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 12 holds 137 sentences of The Plot That Failed, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Plot That Failed by Nicholas (House name) Carter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 137 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 12 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 Plot That Failed by Nicholas (House name) Carter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4240 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66863 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66863, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 353 minutes of reading across 848 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Plot That Failed section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The Plot That Failed 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 Plot That Failed, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
