Chapter 12 of The Secret of Chimneys is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Secret of Chimneys is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Madame, I agree with you entirely.” “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle. “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so. Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know. As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
Chapter 12 of The Secret of Chimneys is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
be in accord; be in agreement
From this reading ““Madame, I agree with you entirely.””
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading ““You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.”
deem to be
From this reading “As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.”
conformity or harmony
From this reading ““You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.”
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading “Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.”
the act of expressing earnest opposition or protest
From this reading “Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.”
a person who is head of an administrative department of government
From this reading “Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.”
plural of “stand” — a support or foundation
From this reading “As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.”
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 ““Madame, I agree with you entirely.””
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading ““You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.”
In this reading “As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.”
In this reading ““You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.”
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 As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
be in accord; be in agreement
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
deem to be
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
at any time
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
conformity or harmony
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
a form of address for a man
From this reading “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so.
not any; not one
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
the act of expressing earnest opposition or protest
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
precisely, exactly
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
a person who is head of an administrative department of government
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so.
plural of “stand” — a support or foundation
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
a special situation
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading “You can’t go on keeping things dark for ever,” said Battle.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “I’ve told Mr. Lomax so.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Mr. Eversleigh is Mr. Lomax’s secretary, there’s no objection to his knowing what there is to know.
in or at the place that
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
in a random manner
From this reading As for Mr. Cade, he’s been brought into the thing willy-nilly, and I consider he’s a right to know where he stands.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Madame, I agree with you entirely.”
Chapter 12 of The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie holds 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 12 holds 407 sentences of The Secret of Chimneys, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 12 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 of Chimneys by Agatha Christie on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7349 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65238 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65238, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1470 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Secret of Chimneys section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of The Secret of Chimneys 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 of Chimneys, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
