Chapter 9 of The Secret of the Earth is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Secret of the Earth is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door. Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end. I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe. What was beyond it? I listened, but no sound came from within.
Chapter 9 of The Secret of the Earth is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
an overwhelming feeling of wonder or admiration
From this reading “I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.”
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading “At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.”
difficult to handle or use especially because of size or weight
From this reading “Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.”
special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.
From this reading “I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.”
something that serves to indicate or suggest
From this reading “At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.”
a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading “Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.”
a bony hollow into which a structure fits
From this reading “Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.”
move in a curve or arc, usually with the intent of hitting
From this reading “Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.”
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 “At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.”
In this reading “At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.”
In this reading “I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.”
In this reading “I listened, but no sound came from within.”
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 At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
an overwhelming feeling of wonder or admiration
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading What was beyond it?
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
difficult to handle or use especially because of size or weight
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading I listened, but no sound came from within.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
characteristic of humanity
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
the quality of being humane
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
something that serves to indicate or suggest
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What was beyond it?
immediately past
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading I listened, but no sound came from within.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
not any; not one
From this reading I listened, but no sound came from within.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
a bony hollow into which a structure fits
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading I listened, but no sound came from within.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
move in a curve or arc, usually with the intent of hitting
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I stopped before this emblem of humanity in awe.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
without doubt; certainly
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading At last I came to what was undoubtedly an indication of life, and of human life, too, for here at the end of the corridor was a door.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Not a common door, but a great cumbersome stone portal, which was made to swing in a socket at the end.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading I listened, but no sound came from within.
Chapter 9 of The Secret of the Earth by Charles Willing Beale holds 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 443 sentences of The Secret of the Earth, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Secret of the Earth by Charles Willing Beale exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 Secret of the Earth by Charles Willing Beale on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3898 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44535 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44535, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 324 minutes of reading across 780 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Secret of the Earth section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Secret of the Earth 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 the Earth, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
