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The Prairie
The Prairie

Chapter XXXIV

Cover illustration for The Prairie
Context Illustration Reading 1/42 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
—Methought, I heard a voice.
—Shakespeare.
The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.
The passage proved prosperous and speedy.
In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.
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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 Prairie

Chapter XXXIV

Reading 1/42 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
—Methought, I heard a voice.
Line 2
—Shakespeare.
Line 3
The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.
Line 4
The passage proved prosperous and speedy.
Line 5
In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Current noun US /ˈcurrent/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Journey noun US /ˈjourney/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Passage noun US /ˈpassage/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “The passage proved prosperous and speedy.”

Prosperous adjective US /ˈprɑspərəs/

successful and without serious problems

From this reading “The passage proved prosperous and speedy.”

Same noun US /same/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Third noun US /third/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Those determiner US /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

Went noun US /went/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.”

All words in this reading · 47

Every word is available to listen to. 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 —Methought, I heard a voice.

accomplished

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

bird

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

boat

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

currentnounUS /ˈcurrent/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

down

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

favour

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

heard

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

From this reading —Methought, I heard a voice.

height

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading —Methought, I heard a voice.

InprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

journeynounUS /ˈjourney/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

land

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

less

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

like

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

Methought

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

From this reading —Methought, I heard a voice.

necessary

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

passagenounUS /ˈpassage/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading The passage proved prosperous and speedy.

prosperousadjectiveUS /ˈprɑspərəs/

successful and without serious problems

From this reading The passage proved prosperous and speedy.

proved

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

From this reading The passage proved prosperous and speedy.

rapid

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

rivers

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

samenounUS /same/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

Shakespeare

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

From this reading —Shakespeare.

speedy

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

From this reading The passage proved prosperous and speedy.

swift

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

thirdnounUS /third/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

voice

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

From this reading —Methought, I heard a voice.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.

water-courses

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

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

wentnounUS /went/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading The water-courses were at their height, and the boat went down the swift current like a bird.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading In less than a third of the time, that would have been necessary for the same journey by land, it was accomplished by the favour of those rapid rivers.