Chapter 5 of The Sirdar's Oath is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Sirdar's Oath is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue. Hilda listened, keenly interested. "And you never got back the stick?" she said. "No, never. I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
Chapter 5 of The Sirdar's Oath is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
inflected form of “bear” — have
From this reading “Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.”
a single distinct event
From this reading “Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.”
in a keen or penetrating way
From this reading “Hilda listened, keenly interested.”
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading “I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.”
denoting or characteristic of countries of the Far East
From this reading “Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.”
past form of “proceed” — continue talking
From this reading “Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.”
free from harm or evil
From this reading “Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.”
put, fix, force, or implant
From this reading “"And you never got back the stick?" she said.”
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 “Hilda listened, keenly interested.”
recover something or somebody that appeared to be lost
In this reading “"And you never got back the stick?" she said.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
inflected form of “bear” — have
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
cause to herd, drive, or crowd together
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
the act of departing
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hilda listened, keenly interested.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
a single distinct event
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
having or showing interest; especially curiosity or fascination or concern
From this reading Hilda listened, keenly interested.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
in a keen or penetrating way
From this reading Hilda listened, keenly interested.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading Hilda listened, keenly interested.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, never.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
denoting or characteristic of countries of the Far East
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
past form of “proceed” — continue talking
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
free from harm or evil
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
express in words
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
put, fix, force, or implant
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
express in words
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Then he proceeded to tell her about the incident of the Oriental in the crowd on Mafeking night, and the part he and others had borne in his rescue.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
(comparative of “bad”) inferior to another in quality or condition or desirability
From this reading I was going to say--worse luck--but it wasn't.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "And you never got back the stick?" she said.
Chapter 5 of The Sirdar's Oath by Bertram Mitford holds 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 5 holds 424 sentences of The Sirdar's Oath, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Sirdar's Oath by Bertram Mitford exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 5 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 Sirdar's Oath by Bertram Mitford on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3328 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36605 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36605, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 277 minutes of reading across 666 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Sirdar's Oath section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The Sirdar's Oath 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 Sirdar's Oath, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
