Chapter 15 of The step on the stair is here in full — 397 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of The step on the stair is here in full — 397 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
We held our breath. The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise. I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering: “The steps on the bridge have stopped. Let us hurry.”
Chapter 15 of The step on the stair is here in full — 397 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
-ing form of “accost” — speak to someone
From this reading “I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:”
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.
From this reading ““The steps on the bridge have stopped.”
in a cheerful manner
From this reading “The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.”
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading “Let us hurry.””
indistinct enunciation
From this reading “The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.”
in other respects or ways
From this reading “The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.”
the quantity of a crop that is harvested
From this reading “The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.”
a light noise, like the noise of silk clothing or leaves blowing in the wind
From this reading “I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:”
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 steps on the bridge have stopped.”
In this reading “I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:”
In this reading “The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.”
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.
-ing form of “accost” — speak to someone
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading We held our breath.
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.
From this reading “The steps on the bridge have stopped.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
in a cheerful manner
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
United States actor (born in Ireland); father of Georgiana Emma Barrymore (1827-1862)
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
destroyed or killed
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “The steps on the bridge have stopped.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading We held our breath.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading Let us hurry.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
moving to the inside of something
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Let us hurry.”
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
indistinct enunciation
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
in other respects or ways
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading We held our breath.
a course of conduct
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
the quantity of a crop that is harvested
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
on the contrary
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
in the near future
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “The steps on the bridge have stopped.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Let us hurry.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading The man came slowly on, picking his way and mumbling to himself rather cheerfully than otherwise.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We held our breath.
at the time that
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
a light noise, like the noise of silk clothing or leaves blowing in the wind
From this reading I was on the point of accosting him when Clarke stopped me and, as soon as the man had gone by, drew me back into the path, whispering:
Chapter 15 of The step on the stair by Anna Katharine Green holds 397 sentences, grouped into 80 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 15 holds 397 sentences of The step on the stair, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of The step on the stair by Anna Katharine Green exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 397 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 15 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.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The step on the stair, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
