Chapter 9 of The Salamander is here in full — 483 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Salamander is here in full — 483 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra. She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete. She was terribly disillusioned. It was not at all exciting. Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
Chapter 9 of The Salamander is here in full — 483 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/96 · 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.
the rapid series of noises made by the parts of a machine
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
freed from illusion
From this reading “She was terribly disillusioned.”
inflected form of “drum” — make a rhythmic sound
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
showing sustained enthusiastic action with unflagging vitality
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
past form of “invade” — march aggressively into another's territory by military force for the purposes of conquest and occupation
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
having no meaning or direction or purpose
From this reading “Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.”
a musical organization consisting of a group of instrumentalists including string players
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
marine mollusks having a rough irregular shell; found on the sea bed mostly in coastal waters
From this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
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.
expect or hope for
In this reading “She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.”
In this reading “They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.”
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 They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
(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 It was not at all exciting.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It was not at all exciting.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
the rapid series of noises made by the parts of a machine
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
the use of speech for informal exchange of views or ideas or information etc.
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
freed from illusion
From this reading She was terribly disillusioned.
inflected form of “drum” — make a rhythmic sound
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
creating or arousing excitement
From this reading It was not at all exciting.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
showing sustained enthusiastic action with unflagging vitality
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
past form of “invade” — march aggressively into another's territory by military force for the purposes of conquest and occupation
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was not at all exciting.
in a keen or penetrating way
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
having no meaning or direction or purpose
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was not at all exciting.
a musical organization consisting of a group of instrumentalists including string players
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
above and across; more than
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
marine mollusks having a rough irregular shell; found on the sea bed mostly in coastal waters
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
a light evening meal; served in early evening if dinner is at midday or served late in the evening at bedtime
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
used as intensifiers
From this reading She was terribly disillusioned.
a private conversation between two people
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
a large gathering of people
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She had looked forward keenly to the tete-a-tete.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading They took their supper in a near-by oyster house, invaded by a chattering throng, drummed over by an indefatigable orchestra.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She was terribly disillusioned.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Conversation was impossible, and what they said was meaningless.
Chapter 9 of The Salamander by Owen Johnson holds 483 sentences, grouped into 97 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 483 sentences of The Salamander, unabridged, divided into 97 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Salamander by Owen Johnson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 483 sentences, grouped into 97 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 97 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 97 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 Salamander by Owen Johnson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9886 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36355 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36355, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1978 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Salamander section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Salamander 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 Salamander, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
