Chapter 40 of The Stolen Brain is here in full — 57 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of The Stolen Brain is here in full — 57 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?” “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop. He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders. He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
Chapter 40 of The Stolen Brain is here in full — 57 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/11 · 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.
the hair growing on the lower part of a man's face
From this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
East Indian annual erect herb; source of sesame seed or benniseed and sesame oil
From this reading ““How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?””
a person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible
From this reading ““How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?””
plural of “murderer” — a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)
From this reading “He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!”
explained or answered
From this reading “THE MYSTERY SOLVED.”
take without the owner's consent
From this reading ““I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.”
a vagrant
From this reading ““I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.”
hairpiece covering the head and made of real or synthetic hair
From this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
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 “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
In this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
In this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
In this reading “He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!”
leave
In this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
to come or go into
In this reading “He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.”
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.
in addition
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
the hair growing on the lower part of a man's face
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
East Indian annual erect herb; source of sesame seed or benniseed and sesame oil
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
a person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
not in accordance with the fact or reality or actuality
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
tangled in a dense mass
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
plural of “murderer” — a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained
From this reading THE MYSTERY SOLVED.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
above and across; more than
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
the back of a military formation or procession
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
cut with a saw
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading He kept saying to himself: ‘I am the king of murderers!
do one's shopping
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
explained or answered
From this reading THE MYSTERY SOLVED.
take without the owner's consent
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MYSTERY SOLVED.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
a vagrant
From this reading “I followed the tramp one night, and saw him steal into the shop.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
hairpiece covering the head and made of real or synthetic hair
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
inflected form of “wear” — be dressed in
From this reading He went into the rear part of the shop and took off the false beard that he wore, also the wig of matted hair that hung over his shoulders.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “How did you come to discover that the man Weeden was Benny the Bum?”
Chapter 40 of The Stolen Brain by Nicholas (House name) Carter holds 57 sentences, grouped into 12 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 40 holds 57 sentences of The Stolen Brain, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of The Stolen Brain by Nicholas (House name) Carter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 57 sentences, grouped into 12 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 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 12 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 40 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 Stolen Brain by Nicholas (House name) Carter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4124 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66740 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66740, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 343 minutes of reading across 825 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Stolen Brain section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Stolen Brain 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 Stolen Brain, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
