Chapter 38 of The Prodigal Father is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVIII
Chapter 38 of The Prodigal Father is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"When you have finished," said Andrew grimly. He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile. "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up. Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture. "What!" said Heriot, "won't you even shake hands?"
Chapter 38 of The Prodigal Father is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading “He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.”
showing a brooding ill humor
From this reading “Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.”
the act of participating in an athletic competition in which you must jump
From this reading “"Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.”
a person who is laughing or who laughs easily
From this reading “He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.”
offensive or even (of persons) malicious
From this reading “He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.”
orchestral music played at the beginning of an opera or oratorio
From this reading “Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.”
past form of “subside” — wear off or die down
From this reading “He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.”
the person who plays that position on a football team
From this reading “He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.”
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 He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
(New Testament) disciple of Jesus; brother of Peter; patron saint of Scotland
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.
someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
divisible by two
From this reading "What!" said Heriot, "won't you even shake hands?"
opinion or judgment
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
characteristic of or befitting a friend
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
showing a brooding ill humor
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
in a grim implacable manner
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What!" said Heriot, "won't you even shake hands?"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
the act of participating in an athletic competition in which you must jump
From this reading "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.
a person who is laughing or who laughs easily
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
and nothing more
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
offensive or even (of persons) malicious
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
orchestral music played at the beginning of an opera or oratorio
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
move or cause to move back and forth
From this reading "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
past form of “subside” — wear off or die down
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
the person who plays that position on a football team
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Andrew placed his hands behind his back, and his glowering eyes answered this overture.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He looked a nasty customer to tackle now, but the laugher on the sofa merely subsided into a friendly smile.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "Shake hands, Andrew," he cried, jumping up.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What!" said Heriot, "won't you even shake hands?"
at the time that
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What!" said Heriot, "won't you even shake hands?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "When you have finished," said Andrew grimly.
Chapter 38 of The Prodigal Father by J. Storer (Joseph Storer) Clouston holds 134 sentences, grouped into 27 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 38 holds 134 sentences of The Prodigal Father, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 38 of The Prodigal Father by J. Storer (Joseph Storer) Clouston exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 134 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 38 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 Prodigal Father by J. Storer (Joseph Storer) Clouston on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4214 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25899 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25899, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 351 minutes of reading across 843 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Prodigal Father section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of The Prodigal Father 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 Prodigal Father, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
