Chapter 1 of The Riverman is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Riverman is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Sluice open all right,” commented Orde. “Thought she might be closed.” “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone. “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.” He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
Chapter 1 of The Riverman is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 21/40 · 5 reading units · Lines 101–105
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.
united by being of the same opinion
From this reading ““'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.””
past form of “comment” — make or write a comment on
From this reading ““Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.”
harmed
From this reading ““I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.”
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading ““I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.”
(American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line
From this reading “He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.”
pour as if from a sluice
From this reading ““Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.”
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading “He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.”
a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts
From this reading “He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.”
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.
united by being of the same opinion
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Thought she might be closed.”
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading “Thought she might be closed.”
past form of “comment” — make or write a comment on
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
harmed
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading “Thought she might be closed.”
the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
To move from a closed position.
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
(American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
cut with a saw
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Thought she might be closed.”
move so that an opening or passage is obstructed; make shut
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
pour as if from a sluice
From this reading “Sluice open all right,” commented Orde.
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “Thought she might be closed.”
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading “I saw to that,” rejoined North in an injured tone.
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading He walked out on the structure and looked down on the smooth water rushing through.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
at the time that
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “'Course,” agreed Orde, “but he might have dropped her shut on you between times, when you weren't looking.”
Chapter 1 of The Riverman by Stewart Edward White holds 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 1 holds 204 sentences of The Riverman, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Riverman by Stewart Edward White exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 1 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 Riverman by Stewart Edward White on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7499 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1099 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1099, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1500 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Riverman section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 36 chapters of The Riverman 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 Riverman, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
