Chapter 20 of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She tried to look impressed. "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it." "I do not understand that either," said Simon. "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble." She shrugged.
Chapter 20 of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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 “christian” — a religious person who believes Jesus is the Christ and who is a member of a Christian denomination
From this reading “"If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."”
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading “"Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."”
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading “"If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."”
deeply or markedly affected or influenced
From this reading “She tried to look impressed.”
plural of “saracen” — (historically) a member of the nomadic people of the Syrian and Arabian deserts at the time of the Roman Empire
From this reading “"If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."”
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading “She shrugged.”
one of the twelve Apostles (first century)
From this reading “"I do not understand that either," said Simon.”
plural of “tartar” — a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading “"If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."”
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.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
plural of “christian” — a religious person who believes Jesus is the Christ and who is a member of a Christian denomination
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
one or the other of two
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
deeply or markedly affected or influenced
From this reading She tried to look impressed.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She tried to look impressed.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
to a great degree or extent
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
plural of “saracen” — (historically) a member of the nomadic people of the Syrian and Arabian deserts at the time of the Roman Empire
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She tried to look impressed.
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading She shrugged.
one of the twelve Apostles (first century)
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
plural of “tartar” — a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She tried to look impressed.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading She tried to look impressed.
a source of difficulty
From this reading "Or why he brought this man David to Orvieto to cause so much trouble."
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading "I do not understand that either," said Simon.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "If _you_ think it would be so good for Christians and Tartars to fight together against the Saracens, I cannot imagine why my uncle is against it."
Chapter 20 of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel by Robert Shea holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 20 holds 401 sentences of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel by Robert Shea exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 20 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 Saracen: Land of the Infidel by Robert Shea on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 14140 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28515 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28515, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2828 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Saracen: Land of the Infidel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Saracen: Land of the Infidel 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 Saracen: Land of the Infidel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
