Chapter 3 of The skeleton crew is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The skeleton crew is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW. “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off. “Black-hearted scoundrel! I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill. Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
Chapter 3 of The skeleton crew is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/75 · 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.
attractive especially by means of smallness or prettiness or quaintness
From this reading “Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.”
a person who operates a farm
From this reading “THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.”
not having legs
From this reading “THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.”
inflected form of “outwit” — beat through cleverness and wit
From this reading “Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.”
a wicked or evil person; someone who does evil deliberately
From this reading ““Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.”
something reduced to its minimal form
From this reading “THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.”
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading “I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.”
morally bad in principle or practice
From this reading “I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.”
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 “THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.”
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 “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
the men and women who man a vehicle (ship, aircraft, etc.)
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
attractive especially by means of smallness or prettiness or quaintness
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
the organ of sight
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
a person who operates a farm
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
affected by an impairment of normal physical or mental function
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
not having legs
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
kill intentionally and with premeditation
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
inflected form of “outwit” — beat through cleverness and wit
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
a wicked or evil person; someone who does evil deliberately
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
something reduced to its minimal form
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
happening without warning or in a short space of time
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MURDER OF FARMER BERTRAM—THE LEGLESS BODY—SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF THE SKELETON CREW.
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “Black-hearted scoundrel!” said a voice, not far off.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Cunning as he was I have outwitted him.
morally bad in principle or practice
From this reading I knew by the wicked twinkle of his eye that he meant me ill.
Chapter 3 of The skeleton crew by Anonymous holds 376 sentences, grouped into 76 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 3 holds 376 sentences of The skeleton crew, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The skeleton crew by Anonymous exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 376 sentences, grouped into 76 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 76 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 76 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 3 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 skeleton crew by Anonymous on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10914 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #70734 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #70734, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2183 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The skeleton crew section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The skeleton crew 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 skeleton crew, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
