Chapter 23 of The Silent Bullet is here in full — 203 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Silent Bullet is here in full — 203 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“What's the matter?” I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press. “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply. “Whew!” I whistled.
Chapter 23 of The Silent Bullet is here in full — 203 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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 emblem (a small piece of plastic or cloth or metal) that signifies your status (rank or membership or affiliation etc.)
From this reading “I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.”
an explosive device fused to explode under specific conditions
From this reading ““Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.”
-ing form of “display” — to show, make visible or apparent
From this reading “I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.”
forced or compelled or put in force
From this reading “I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.”
brief and to the point; effectively cut short
From this reading ““Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.”
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading “I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.”
possessive form of “reporter” — a person who investigates and reports or edits news stories
From this reading “I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.”
past form of “whistle” — make whistling sounds
From this reading “I whistled.”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
an emblem (a small piece of plastic or cloth or metal) that signifies your status (rank or membership or affiliation etc.)
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
an explosive device fused to explode under specific conditions
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
-ing form of “display” — to show, make visible or apparent
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
forced or compelled or put in force
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
a message received and understood
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
brief and to the point; effectively cut short
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading “What's the matter?”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
concerned with principles of right and wrong or conforming to standards of behavior and character based on those principles
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
possessive form of “reporter” — a person who investigates and reports or edits news stories
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “What's the matter?”
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
in the direction of
From this reading I inquired of an officer near me, displaying my reporter's fire-line badge, more for its moral effect than in the hope of getting any real information in these days of enforced silence toward the press.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Black Hand bomb,” was the laconic reply.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What's the matter?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Whew!”
past form of “whistle” — make whistling sounds
From this reading I whistled.
Chapter 23 of The Silent Bullet by Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin) Reeve holds 203 sentences, grouped into 41 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 23 holds 203 sentences of The Silent Bullet, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Silent Bullet by Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin) Reeve exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 203 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 23 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 Silent Bullet by Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin) Reeve on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5837 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2454 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2454, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 486 minutes of reading across 1168 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Silent Bullet section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of The Silent Bullet 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 Silent Bullet, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
