Chapter 4 of The Splendid Outcast is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Outcast is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand. "Jim! You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered. Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair. "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Outcast is here in full — 412 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.
move back and forth very rapidly
From this reading “He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.”
a long fixed look
From this reading “He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.”
past form of “grope” — feel about uncertainly or blindly
From this reading “He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.”
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.”
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading “You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.”
very light colored; highly diluted with white
From this reading “He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.”
past form of “release” — release, as from one's grip
From this reading “Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.”
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading “Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.”
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.
move the upper body backwards and down
In this reading “Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.”
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.
anew
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
start firing a weapon
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
move back and forth very rapidly
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
a long fixed look
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
past form of “grope” — feel about uncertainly or blindly
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Jim!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
come together
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
past form of “mutter” — talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice
From this reading You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
very light colored; highly diluted with white
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
in a manner arousing sympathy and compassion
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
participate in games or sport
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
past form of “release” — release, as from one's grip
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
cut with a saw
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading Jim released his hand, shrugged and leaned back in his chair.
successive (without a break)
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading He saw Harry’s face go pale again as he tried to meet his gaze, saw the fire flicker out of him, as he groped pitiably for Jim’s hand.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Not if you play straight with me—and with her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You—you wouldn’t do that?" he muttered.
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Outcast by George Gibbs holds 412 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 4 holds 412 sentences of The Splendid Outcast, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Splendid Outcast by George Gibbs exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 412 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 4 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 Splendid Outcast by George Gibbs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7850 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #47900 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #47900, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1570 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Splendid Outcast section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The Splendid Outcast 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 Splendid Outcast, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
