Chapter 4 of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper is here in full — 133 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper is here in full — 133 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man. “Very good, sir. But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage. You can get another cab there, though.” A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
Chapter 4 of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper is here in full — 133 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.
an industrial city and port in southwestern England near the mouth of the River Avon
From this reading “THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.”
a compartment at the front of a motor vehicle or locomotive where driver sits
From this reading “You can get another cab there, though.””
a percussion instrument consisting of a set of tuned bells that are struck with a hammer; used as an orchestral instrument
From this reading “A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.”
past form of “chime” — emit a sound
From this reading “A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.”
an outbuilding (or part of a building) for housing automobiles
From this reading “But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.”
a surrounding or nearby region
From this reading “A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.”
the state of being alone in solitary isolation
From this reading “A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.”
(of a leaf shape) having a somewhat elongated form with approximately parallel sides
From this reading “THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.”
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 A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
an industrial city and port in southwestern England near the mouth of the River Avon
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
a compartment at the front of a motor vehicle or locomotive where driver sits
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
a percussion instrument consisting of a set of tuned bells that are struck with a hammer; used as an orchestral instrument
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
past form of “chime” — emit a sound
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
a timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
in a manner differing from the usual or expected
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
to or at a greater extent or degree or a more advanced stage (“further” is used more often than “farther” in this abstract sense)
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
an outbuilding (or part of a building) for housing automobiles
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading “Very good, sir.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
conformity or harmony
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
a surrounding or nearby region
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
the state of being alone in solitary isolation
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
(of a leaf shape) having a somewhat elongated form with approximately parallel sides
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
characteristic of former times especially in Europe
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
located far away spatially
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
term of address for a man
From this reading “Very good, sir.
carry out
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading But I shan’t be able to take you further back than the Brixton Garage.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
in or at that place or location
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
in spite of the fact that
From this reading You can get another cab there, though.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
precisely as stated
From this reading “Very good, sir.
stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A clock chimed out—an old-world chime in keeping with the loneliness, the curiously remote loneliness, of the locality.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading THE OBLONG BOX “You had better wait for us,” said Bristol to the taxi-man.
Chapter 4 of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper by Sax Rohmer holds 133 sentences, grouped into 27 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 4 holds 133 sentences of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper by Sax Rohmer exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 133 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 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.
Common questions about reading The Quest of the Sacred Slipper by Sax Rohmer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3264 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2126 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2126, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 272 minutes of reading across 653 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Quest of the Sacred Slipper section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of The Quest of the Sacred Slipper 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 Quest of the Sacred Slipper, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
