Chapter 23 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BIRTHMARK. High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day. Stepping into the hall he met Barnes. Offering him his hand, he said: “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
Chapter 23 of The Plot That Failed is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
a blemish on the skin that is formed before birth
From this reading “THE BIRTHMARK.”
Englishman and Egyptologist who in 1922 discovered and excavated the tomb of Tutankhamen (1873-1939)
From this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
possessive form of “field” — a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
something offered (as a proposal or bid)
From this reading “Offering him his hand, he said:”
relating to or being a palace
From this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step
From this reading “Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.”
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
From this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
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.
the middle of the day
In this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
In this reading “High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.”
In this reading “Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.”
move away from a place into another direction
In this reading ““Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
a blemish on the skin that is formed before birth
From this reading THE BIRTHMARK.
Englishman and Egyptologist who in 1922 discovered and excavated the tomb of Tutankhamen (1873-1939)
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
possessive form of “field” — a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Offering him his hand, he said:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Offering him his hand, he said:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Offering him his hand, he said:
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
a form of address for a man
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
cut slightly, with a razor
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
the middle of the day
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
something offered (as a proposal or bid)
From this reading Offering him his hand, he said:
relating to or being a palace
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Offering him his hand, he said:
inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step
From this reading Stepping into the hall he met Barnes.
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BIRTHMARK.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
(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, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
at the time that
From this reading High noon was striking when Nick Carter entered Mr. Field’s palatial house the following day.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Well, I left you here when I went away, and I find you here now.
Chapter 23 of The Plot That Failed by Nicholas (House name) Carter holds 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 23 holds 161 sentences of The Plot That Failed, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Plot That Failed by Nicholas (House name) Carter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 23 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.
