Chapter XX of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story, “A Strange Will,” is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter XX of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story, “A Strange Will,” is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished. "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank. Tamaroo nodded impressively. "It is set forth here," he said. "This is a copy of the will.
Chapter XX of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story, “A Strange Will,” is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/56 · 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 feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
a reproduction of a written record (e.g. of a legal or school record)
From this reading “"This is a copy of the will.”
accept an excuse for
From this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
communicated in words
From this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
in an impressive manner
From this reading “Tamaroo nodded impressively.”
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading “Tamaroo nodded impressively.”
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.
state
In this reading “"It is set forth here," he said.”
In this reading “"This is a copy of the will.”
In this reading “Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.”
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 "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
a gathering of spectators or listeners at a (usually public) performance
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
a state at a particular time
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
a reproduction of a written record (e.g. of a legal or school record)
From this reading "This is a copy of the will.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
accept an excuse for
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
communicated in words
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
in an impressive manner
From this reading Tamaroo nodded impressively.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading Tamaroo nodded impressively.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
express in words
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "It is set forth here," he said.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "This is a copy of the will.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Tamaroo smiled at the amazement expressed on the faces of his audience, although they had every excuse to look astonished.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Do you mean to say that such a condition is in the will?" asked Frank.
Chapter 20 of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story by Fergus Hume holds 281 sentences, grouped into 57 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 281 sentences of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story, unabridged, divided into 57 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story by Fergus Hume exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 281 sentences, grouped into 57 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 57 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 57 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 Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story by Fergus Hume on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6424 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56356 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56356, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 535 minutes of reading across 1285 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story 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 Scarlet Bat: A Detective Story, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
