Chapter 4 of The Secret of the Night is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Secret of the Night is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general. “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine. “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier. That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget. But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
Chapter 4 of The Secret of the Night is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading ““Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.”
accept an excuse for
From this reading ““Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.”
plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading “But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.””
past form of “grumble” — show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading ““Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.”
cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading “But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.””
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading ““Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.”
plural of “revolutionary” — a radical supporter of political or social revolution
From this reading “That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.”
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading ““Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.”
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 “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
(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 But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
for the reason that
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
accept an excuse for
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
past form of “grumble” — show one's unhappiness or critical attitude
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
not any; not one
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “Poor Boichlikoff did his duty, as I did mine.
plural of “revolutionary” — a radical supporter of political or social revolution
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading That is what the revolutionaries ought not to forget.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading But have no fears for us, papa; because if they kill you we will all die with you.”
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes, papa, you acted like a soldier.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Oh, you, you always find an excuse,” grumbled the general.
Chapter 4 of The Secret of the Night by Gaston Leroux holds 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 4 holds 214 sentences of The Secret of the Night, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Secret of the Night by Gaston Leroux exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 4 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 Night by Gaston Leroux on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7078 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1686 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1686, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 589 minutes of reading across 1416 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Secret of the Night section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of The Secret of the Night 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 Night, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
