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The poisoned chocolates case
The poisoned chocolates case

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case is here in full — 246 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for The poisoned chocolates case
Context Illustration Reading 1/49 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.
There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.
One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.
Their theory must be mistaken.
This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The poisoned chocolates case

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case is here in full — 246 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/49 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.
Line 2
There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.
/ðer wɑːz ə lɑːt tuː dɪˈskʌs ənd ˈevribɑːdi hæd vjuːz tuː pʊt ˈfɔːrwərd səˈdʒestʃənz tuː meɪk ənd ˈθɪriz tuː ədˈvæns/
Line 3
One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.
/wʌn θɪŋ ɪˈmɜːrdʒd wɪð ˈsɪŋɡjələr ˌjuːnəˈnɪməti ðə pəˈliːs hæd bɪn ˈwɜːrkɪŋ ɑːn ðə rɔːŋ laɪnz/
Line 4
Their theory must be mistaken.
/ðer ˈθɪri mʌst biː mɪˈsteɪkən/
Line 5
This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.
/ðɪs wɑːz nɑːt ə ˈkæʒəwəl ˈmɜːrdər baɪ ə tʃæns ˈluːnətɪk/

Learner Dictionary

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.

casual adjective US /ˈkæʒəwəl/

marked by blithe unconcern

From this reading “This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.”

discuss verb US /dɪˈskʌs/

to consider or examine in speech or writing

From this reading “There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.”

emerged verb US /ɪˈmɜːrdʒd/

past form of “emerge” — come out into view, as from concealment

From this reading “One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.”

lunatic adjective US /ˈluːnətɪk/

insane and believed to be affected by the phases of the moon

From this reading “This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.”

suggestions noun US /səˈdʒestʃənz/

plural of “suggestion” — an idea that is suggested

From this reading “There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.”

theories noun US /ˈθɪriz/

plural of “theory” — a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena

From this reading “There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.”

unanimity noun US /ˌjuːnəˈnɪməti/

everyone being of one mind

From this reading “One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.”

views noun US /vjuːz/

plural of “view” — a way of regarding situations or topics etc.

From this reading “There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

some time adjective + noun

In this reading “The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.”

put forward verb + particle

put before

In this reading “There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.”

All words in this reading · 49

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

advanceverbUS /ədˈvæns/

move forward, also in the metaphorical sense

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading Their theory must be mistaken.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

casualadjectiveUS /ˈkæʒəwəl/

marked by blithe unconcern

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

chancenounUS /tʃæns/

a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

CirclenounUS /ˈsɜːrkəl/

ellipse in which the two axes are of equal length; a plane curve generated by one point moving at a constant distance from a fixed point

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

discussverbUS /dɪˈskʌs/

to consider or examine in speech or writing

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

emergedverbUS /ɪˈmɜːrdʒd/

past form of “emerge” — come out into view, as from concealment

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

everybodypronounUS /ˈevribɑːdi/

every person

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

forwardadverbUS /ˈfɔːrwərd/

at or to or toward the front

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

goneadjectiveUS /ɡɔːn/

destroyed or killed

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

linesnounUS /laɪnz/

plural of “line” — a formation of people or things one beside another

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

lotnounUS /lɑːt/

(often followed by “of”) a large number or amount or extent

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

lunaticadjectiveUS /ˈluːnətɪk/

insane and believed to be affected by the phases of the moon

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

makeverbUS /meɪk/

engage in

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

mistakenadjectiveUS /mɪˈsteɪkən/

wrong in e.g. opinion or judgment

From this reading Their theory must be mistaken.

Moresby

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

murderverbUS /ˈmɜːrdər/

kill intentionally and with premeditation

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading Their theory must be mistaken.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

OnepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

policenounUS /pəˈliːs/

the force of policemen and officers

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

putverbUS /pʊt/

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

singularadjectiveUS /ˈsɪŋɡjələr/

unusual or striking

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

someadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

suggestionsnounUS /səˈdʒestʃənz/

plural of “suggestion” — an idea that is suggested

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

TheirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading Their theory must be mistaken.

theoriesnounUS /ˈθɪriz/

plural of “theory” — a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

theorynounUS /ˈθɪri/

a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena

From this reading Their theory must be mistaken.

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

thingnounUS /θɪŋ/

a special situation

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading This was not a casual murder by a chance lunatic.

timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading The Circle sat on for some time after Moresby had gone.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

unanimitynounUS /ˌjuːnəˈnɪməti/

everyone being of one mind

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

viewsnounUS /vjuːz/

plural of “view” — a way of regarding situations or topics etc.

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading There was a lot to discuss, and everybody had views to put forward, suggestions to make, and theories to advance.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

workingadjectiveUS /ˈwɜːrkɪŋ/

actively engaged in paid work

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

wrongadjectiveUS /rɔːŋ/

not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth

From this reading One thing emerged with singular unanimity: the police had been working on the wrong lines.

Chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case by Anthony Berkeley holds 246 sentences, grouped into 50 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.

What does chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case contain?

Chapter 4 holds 246 sentences of The poisoned chocolates case, unabridged, divided into 50 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case by Anthony Berkeley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 246 sentences, grouped into 50 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.

How do I study chapter 4 of The poisoned chocolates case?

Work through the 50 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 50 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.

Can chapter 4 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 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.

Questions about reading The poisoned chocolates case

Common questions about reading The poisoned chocolates case by Anthony Berkeley on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The poisoned chocolates case?

Yes. All 4166 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #75476 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The poisoned chocolates case is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #75476, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The poisoned chocolates case take to read?

About 347 minutes of reading across 834 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The poisoned chocolates case section by section

How to work through The poisoned chocolates case section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 18 chapters of The poisoned chocolates case to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in The poisoned chocolates case

Words and structures a reader meets early in The poisoned chocolates case, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Because
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The poisoned chocolates case; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Guess
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The poisoned chocolates case; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Roger
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The poisoned chocolates case; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Sheringham
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The poisoned chocolates case; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.