Chapter 9 of The Rome Express is here in full — 147 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Rome Express is here in full — 147 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“What next?” asked the Judge. “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective. “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways. I long to come to close quarters with him. He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
Chapter 9 of The Rome Express is here in full — 147 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
blowing in violent and abrupt bursts
From this reading ““That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.”
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading ““That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.”
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading ““That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.”
housing available for people to live in
From this reading “I long to come to close quarters with him.”
past form of “ridicule” — subject to laughter or ridicule
From this reading “He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.””
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading ““That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.”
flamboyantly reckless and boastful behavior
From this reading ““That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.”
past form of “taunt” — harass with persistent criticism or carping
From this reading “He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.””
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.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “What next?” asked the Judge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
blowing in violent and abrupt bursts
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading “What next?” asked the Judge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
a chronic inflammatory collagen disease affecting connective tissue (skin or joints)
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
immediately following in time or order
From this reading “What next?” asked the Judge.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
exceedingly harmful
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
housing available for people to live in
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
past form of “ridicule” — subject to laughter or ridicule
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
flamboyantly reckless and boastful behavior
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
past form of “taunt” — harass with persistent criticism or carping
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “What next?” asked the Judge.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I long to come to close quarters with him.
structure consisting of a sloping way down to the water from the place where ships are built or repaired
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What next?” asked the Judge.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading He ridiculed me, taunted me, said I knew nothing—we will see, we will see.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading “That fire-eating, swashbuckling soldier, with his blustering barrack-room ways.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “That pestilent English officer, if you please, M. le Juge,” said the detective.
Chapter 9 of The Rome Express by Arthur Griffiths holds 147 sentences, grouped into 30 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 9 holds 147 sentences of The Rome Express, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Rome Express by Arthur Griffiths exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 147 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 9 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 Rome Express by Arthur Griffiths on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Rome Express section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Rome Express 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 Rome Express, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
