Chapter XXV of The secret in the hill, “What the Letter Said,” is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter XXV of The secret in the hill, “What the Letter Said,” is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us. There was no need to question anything but his face. “Yes,” he said, “it is over. God give him mercy!” By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
Chapter XXV of The secret in the hill, “What the Letter Said,” is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
permission to do something
From this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
the time of day immediately following sunset
From this reading “We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.”
leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice
From this reading “God give him mercy!””
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
past form of “restore” — return to its original or usable and functioning condition
From this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading “We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.”
the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
From this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
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 “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
In this reading “By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.”
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.
(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 We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
any thing at all
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
permission to do something
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading God give him mercy!”
the time of day immediately following sunset
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading God give him mercy!”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading God give him mercy!”
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice
From this reading God give him mercy!”
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
a form of address for a man
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
above and across; more than
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
past form of “restore” — return to its original or usable and functioning condition
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
in a somber manner
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
express in speech
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
up to a particular time
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
precisely as stated
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was no need to question anything but his face.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
at the time that
From this reading We were all sitting very sombrely in the gloaming, when Mr. Sant came in to us.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading By common consent we would speak no more on the subject until nature had been restored.
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes,” he said, “it is over.
Chapter 25 of The secret in the hill by Bernard Capes holds 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 25 holds 155 sentences of The secret in the hill, unabridged, divided into 31 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of The secret in the hill by Bernard Capes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 31 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 31 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 25 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 secret in the hill by Bernard Capes on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The secret in the hill section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The secret in the hill 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 secret in the hill, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
