Chapter 9 of The silent places is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The silent places is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment. Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started. He never looked back. Madness held him. Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
Chapter 9 of The silent places is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
the act of giving something up
From this reading “He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.”
plural of “advantage” — the quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading “Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.”
marked by skill in deception
From this reading “Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.”
subtly skillful handling of a situation
From this reading “Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.”
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading “He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.”
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
From this reading “Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.”
obsolete terms for legal insanity
From this reading “Madness held him.”
an act of economizing; reduction in cost
From this reading “Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.”
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 He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
the act of giving something up
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
plural of “advantage” — the quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading He never looked back.
marked by skill in deception
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
subtly skillful handling of a situation
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading Madness held him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Madness held him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He never looked back.
obsolete terms for legal insanity
From this reading Madness held him.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He never looked back.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
an act of economizing; reduction in cost
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
inflected form of “throw” — propel through the air
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Finesse, saving, the crafty utilising of small advantages had had their day.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He threw his hands up with a gesture of abandonment.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading Then without a word, grim and terrible, he put his head down and started.
Chapter 9 of The silent places by Stewart Edward White holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 411 sentences of The silent places, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The silent places by Stewart Edward White exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 silent places by Stewart Edward White on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3781 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14960 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14960, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 315 minutes of reading across 757 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The silent places section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The silent places 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 places, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
