Chapter 1 of The Spider's Web is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Spider's Web is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc. That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades! —FRANCIS ADAMS. Thou orb of many orbs! Thou seething principle!
Chapter 1 of The Spider's Web is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
American Revolutionary leader and patriot; an organizer of the Boston Tea Party and signer of the Declaration of Independence (1722-1803)
From this reading “—FRANCIS ADAMS.”
excited in anticipation
From this reading “That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!”
plural of “barricade” — a barrier set up by police to stop traffic on a street or road in order to catch a fugitive or inspect traffic etc.
From this reading “That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!”
the state of being under the control of a force or influence or abstract power
From this reading “Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.”
the ball-shaped capsule containing the vertebrate eye
From this reading “Thou orb of many orbs!”
plural of “rifle” — a shoulder firearm with a long barrel and a rifled bore
From this reading “That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!”
in constant agitation
From this reading “Thou seething principle!”
plural of “spade” — a playing card in the major suit that has one or more black figures on it
From this reading “That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!”
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.
a flag that serves as a warning signal
In this reading “That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!”
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.
American Revolutionary leader and patriot; an organizer of the Boston Tea Party and signer of the Declaration of Independence (1722-1803)
From this reading —FRANCIS ADAMS.
excited in anticipation
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
plural of “barricade” — a barrier set up by police to stop traffic on a street or road in order to catch a fugitive or inspect traffic etc.
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
the state of being under the control of a force or influence or abstract power
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
emblem usually consisting of a rectangular piece of cloth of distinctive design
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading —FRANCIS ADAMS.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading Thou orb of many orbs!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
the ball-shaped capsule containing the vertebrate eye
From this reading Thou orb of many orbs!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thou orb of many orbs!
a basic generalization that is accepted as true and that can be used as a basis for reasoning or conduct
From this reading Thou seething principle!
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
plural of “rifle” — a shoulder firearm with a long barrel and a rifled bore
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
in constant agitation
From this reading Thou seething principle!
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
utter in a loud voice; talk in a loud voice (usually denoting characteristic manner of speaking)
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
plural of “spade” — a playing card in the major suit that has one or more black figures on it
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
be standing; be upright
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Author of "The House of Bondage," etc., etc.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading Thou orb of many orbs!
articulate; either verbally or with a cry, shout, or noise
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
at the time that
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
in the company of; together with
From this reading That’s the shout, the shout we shall utter When, with rifles and spades, We stand, with the old Red Flag aflutter On the barricades!
Chapter 1 of The Spider's Web by Reginald Wright Kauffman holds 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 1 holds 418 sentences of The Spider's Web, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Spider's Web by Reginald Wright Kauffman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 1 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 Spider's Web by Reginald Wright Kauffman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6259 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45866 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45866, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 521 minutes of reading across 1252 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Spider's Web section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of The Spider's Web 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 Spider's Web, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
