Chapter 13 of The sailor boy is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of The sailor boy is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BOAT-EXPEDITION. “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning. Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time. Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters. The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
Chapter 13 of The sailor boy is here in full — 120 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/24 · 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.
plural of “bell” — a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading ““All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.”
plural of “cutter” — someone who cuts or carves stone
From this reading “Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.”
carry out or participate in an activity; be involved in
From this reading “Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.”
a purposeful or industrious undertaking (especially one that requires effort or boldness)
From this reading “The men and material for the enterprise were ready.”
a small natural hill
From this reading “Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.”
-ing form of “hasten” — act or move at high speed
From this reading “Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.”
past form of “pipe” — utter a shrill cry
From this reading ““All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.”
the right side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose
From this reading ““All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.”
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.
In this reading ““All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.”
In this reading ““All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.”
remove from sight
In this reading “Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.”
In this reading “Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
(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 “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
plural of “bell” — a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE BOAT-EXPEDITION.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
rid of obstructions
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
plural of “cutter” — someone who cuts or carves stone
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
having or showing keen interest or intense desire or impatient expectancy
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
being one more than seven
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
carry out or participate in an activity; be involved in
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
a purposeful or industrious undertaking (especially one that requires effort or boldness)
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
a military campaign designed to achieve a specific objective in a foreign country
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
a small natural hill
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
-ing form of “hasten” — act or move at high speed
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
a small worthless amount
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
the officer below the master on a commercial ship
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
the force of workers available
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
(often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
past form of “pipe” — utter a shrill cry
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hastening to the spar-deck, he heard the order given to clear away the cutters.
the right side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BOAT-EXPEDITION.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
look attentively
From this reading “All the starboard watch, ahoy!” piped the boatswain’s mate at eight bells on the following morning.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The men and material for the enterprise were ready.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Jack turned out of his hammock, eager to engage in the expedition which was to start at this time.
Chapter 13 of The sailor boy by Oliver Optic holds 120 sentences, grouped into 24 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 13 holds 120 sentences of The sailor boy, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The sailor boy by Oliver Optic exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 120 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 13 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in The sailor boy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
