Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
The purple sickle murders
The purple sickle murders

Chapter XV

Chapter 15 of The purple sickle murders is here in full — 325 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for The purple sickle murders
Context Illustration Reading 1/65 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.
He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.
There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.
Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.
Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
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 purple sickle murders

Chapter XV

Chapter 15 of The purple sickle murders is here in full — 325 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/65 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.
Line 2
He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.
/hiː kʊd nɑːt ɡet aʊt ʌv hɪz maɪnd ðə θɔːt ðæt ɪf ˈeniθɪŋ ˈhæpənd tuː hɜːr hiː wɑːz baɪ noʊ miːnz friː frʌm riˌspɑːnsəˈbɪləti/
Line 3
There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.
/ðer kʊd biː noʊ daʊt ðæt ɪt wɑːz θruː hɪm ðæt ʃiː hæd ˌɪnˈkɜːrd ðə səˈspɪʃən ʌv ðə ɡæŋ ənd hiː hæd led hɜːr tuː bɪˈliːv ðæt ʃiː kʊd kənˈfaɪd ɪn hɪm wɪð pərˈfekt ˈseɪfti/
Line 4
Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.
/ˈbɪtərli hiː rɪˈɡretɪd hɪz ˈoʊvərsaɪt ɪn nɑːt ˈhævɪŋ hɜːr ˈʃædoʊd soʊ ðæt hɜːr ˈkɪdnæpɪŋ wʊd hæv bɪn ˌɪmˈpɑːsəbəl/
Line 5
Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.
/əˈɡen ənd əˈɡen hiː kɜːrst hɪz mɪˈsteɪk ənd əˈɡen ənd əˈɡen hiː swɔːr tuː liːv noʊ stoʊn ənˈtɜːrnd tuː seɪv hɜːr ənd ɪf ənˈhæpəli hiː feɪld ɪn ðæt tuː brɪŋ hɜːr ˈmɜːrdərərz tuː ˈdʒʌstəs/

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.

Expounds verb US /ɪkˈspaʊndz/

third-person singular of “expound” — add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing

From this reading “Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.”

incurred verb US /ˌɪnˈkɜːrd/

inflected form of “incur” — make oneself subject to; bring upon oneself; become liable to

From this reading “There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.”

kidnapping noun US /ˈkɪdnæpɪŋ/

(law) the unlawful act of capturing and carrying away a person against their will and holding them in false imprisonment

From this reading “Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.”

murderers noun US /ˈmɜːrdərərz/

plural of “murderer” — a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)

From this reading “Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.”

oversight noun US /ˈoʊvərsaɪt/

an unintentional omission resulting from failure to notice something

From this reading “Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.”

shadowed adjective US /ˈʃædoʊd/

filled with shade

From this reading “Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.”

unhappily adverb US /ənˈhæpəli/

in an unpleasant way

From this reading “Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.”

unturned adjective US /ənˈtɜːrnd/

not turned

From this reading “Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.”

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.

perfect safety adjective + noun

In this reading “There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.”

free from verb + particle

In this reading “He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.”

get out verb + adjective

move out of or depart from

In this reading “He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.”

confide in verb + particle

In this reading “There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.”

All words in this reading · 75

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.

AgainadverbUS /əˈɡen/

anew

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

anythingpronounUS /ˈeniθɪŋ/

any thing at all

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

believeverbUS /bɪˈliːv/

accept as true; take to be true

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

BitterlyadverbUS /ˈbɪtərli/

with bitterness; in a resentful manner

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

bringverbUS /brɪŋ/

take something or somebody with oneself somewhere

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

confideverbUS /kənˈfaɪd/

reveal in private; tell confidentially

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

Cullimore

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

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

cursedadjectiveUS /kɜːrst/

deserving a curse; sometimes used as an intensifier

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

disappearancenounUS /ˌdɪsəˈpɪrəns/

the act of leaving secretly or without explanation

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

doubtnounUS /daʊt/

the state of being unsure of something

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

ExpoundsverbUS /ɪkˈspaʊndz/

third-person singular of “expound” — add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

failedverbUS /feɪld/

past form of “fail” — fail to do something; leave something undone

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

freeverbUS /friː/

grant freedom to; free from confinement

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

FrenchnounUS /frentʃ/

the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

gangnounUS /ɡæŋ/

an association of criminals

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

getverbUS /ɡet/

come into the possession of something concrete or abstract

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

happenedverbUS /ˈhæpənd/

past form of “happen” — come to pass

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

havingauxiliary verbUS /ˈhævɪŋ/

the -ing form of “have”

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

ifconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

impossibleadjectiveUS /ˌɪmˈpɑːsəbəl/

not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

incurredverbUS /ˌɪnˈkɜːrd/

inflected form of “incur” — make oneself subject to; bring upon oneself; become liable to

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

justicenounUS /ˈdʒʌstəs/

the quality of being just or fair

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

kidnappingnounUS /ˈkɪdnæpɪŋ/

(law) the unlawful act of capturing and carrying away a person against their will and holding them in false imprisonment

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

leaveverbUS /liːv/

go away from a place

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

lednounUS /led/

diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

meansnounUS /miːnz/

thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

mindnounUS /maɪnd/

The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

mistakenounUS /mɪˈsteɪk/

a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

MollynounUS /ˈmɑːli/

popular aquarium fish

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

Moran

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

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

MrnounUS /ˈmɪstər/

a form of address for a man

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

murderersnounUS /ˈmɜːrdərərz/

plural of “murderer” — a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

oversightnounUS /ˈoʊvərsaɪt/

an unintentional omission resulting from failure to notice something

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

perfectadjectiveUS /pərˈfekt/

being complete of its kind and without defect or blemish

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

profoundlyadverbUS /proʊˈfaʊndli/

to a great depth psychologically or emotionally

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

regrettedverbUS /rɪˈɡretɪd/

inflected form of “regret” — feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

responsibilitynounUS /riˌspɑːnsəˈbɪləti/

the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

safetynounUS /ˈseɪfti/

the state of being certain that adverse effects will not be caused by some agent under defined conditions

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

saveprepositionUS /seɪv/

except for; apart from

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

shadowedadjectiveUS /ˈʃædoʊd/

filled with shade

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

stonenounUS /stoʊn/

a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

suspicionnounUS /səˈspɪʃən/

an impression that something might be the case

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

sworeverbUS /swɔːr/

inflected form of “swear” — utter obscenities or profanities

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

thoughtnounUS /θɔːt/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading He could not get out of his mind the thought that if anything happened to her he was by no means free from responsibility.

unhappilyadverbUS /ənˈhæpəli/

in an unpleasant way

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

unturnedadjectiveUS /ənˈtɜːrnd/

not turned

From this reading Again and again he cursed his mistake and again and again he swore to leave no stone unturned to save her, and if unhappily he failed in that, to bring her murderers to justice.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading There could be no doubt that it was through him that she had incurred the suspicion of the gang, and he had led her to believe that she could confide in him with perfect safety.

worriedadjectiveUS /ˈwɜːrid/

afflicted with or marked by anxious uneasiness or trouble or grief

From this reading Mr. Cullimore Expounds French was profoundly worried by the disappearance of Molly Moran.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

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

From this reading Bitterly he regretted his oversight in not having her shadowed so that her kidnapping would have been impossible.

Chapter 15 of The purple sickle murders by Freeman Wills Crofts holds 325 sentences, grouped into 65 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 15 of The purple sickle murders contain?

Chapter 15 holds 325 sentences of The purple sickle murders, unabridged, divided into 65 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 15 of The purple sickle murders by Freeman Wills Crofts exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 325 sentences, grouped into 65 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 15 of The purple sickle murders?

Work through the 65 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 65 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 15 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 15 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 purple sickle murders

Common questions about reading The purple sickle murders by Freeman Wills Crofts on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The purple sickle murders?

Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The purple sickle murders is used?

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

How long does The purple sickle murders take to read?

About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The purple sickle murders section by section

How to work through The purple sickle murders section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 0 chapters of The purple sickle murders 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 purple sickle murders

Words and structures a reader meets early in The purple sickle murders, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Chapter 1
One of the 0 chapters of The purple sickle murders, divided into 5-sentence reading sections.
Chapter 2
One of the 0 chapters of The purple sickle murders, divided into 5-sentence reading sections.
Chapter 3
One of the 0 chapters of The purple sickle murders, divided into 5-sentence reading sections.