Chapter 4 of The Root of Evil is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Root of Evil is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MR. BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression. He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home. It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her. What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
Chapter 4 of The Root of Evil is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
a mental state characterized by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and a despondent lack of activity
From this reading “BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.”
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading “He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.”
without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success
From this reading “BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.”
obsolete terms for legal insanity
From this reading “What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?”
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading “It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.”
your grandmother
From this reading “He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.”
United States painter best known for his portraits of George Washington (1755-1828)
From this reading “BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.”
make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading “It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.”
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 BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
a mental state characterized by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and a despondent lack of activity
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
set up or found
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
resulting from one's intentions
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
held dear
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
obsolete terms for legal insanity
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
engage in
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
a form of address for a man
From this reading MR.
your grandmother
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
above and across; more than
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
a general conscious awareness
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
United States painter best known for his portraits of George Washington (1755-1828)
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading He had intended to make an engagement with Nan to visit the little home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was impossible to suggest it in the mood he had found her.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
in the company of; together with
From this reading BIVENS CALLS Stuart waked next morning with a sense of hopeless depression.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading What strange madness had come over the woman he loved?
Chapter 4 of The Root of Evil by Thomas, Jr. Dixon holds 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 4 holds 200 sentences of The Root of Evil, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Root of Evil by Thomas, Jr. Dixon exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 Root of Evil by Thomas, Jr. Dixon on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8153 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24093 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24093, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1631 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Root of Evil section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of The Root of Evil 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 Root of Evil, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
