Chapter 9 of The Story of an African Farm is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Story of an African Farm is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap. He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene. The wagon came on slowly. Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine. It was finished now.
Chapter 9 of The Story of an African Farm is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
French general who became emperor of the French (1769-1821)
From this reading “Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.”
past form of “chuck” — throw carelessly
From this reading “He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.”
(of hair) making curls or having been made to curl
From this reading “Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.”
an expectation
From this reading “He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.”
-ing form of “rest” — not move; be in a resting position
From this reading “Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.”
plural of “sack” — a bag made of paper or plastic for holding customer's purchases
From this reading “Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.”
a very small spot
From this reading “He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.”
any of various kinds of wheeled vehicles drawn by an animal or a tractor
From this reading “The wagon came on slowly.”
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 He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
surrounded by; in the middle of a group
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
French general who became emperor of the French (1769-1821)
From this reading Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.
the front of the trunk from the neck to the abdomen
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The wagon came on slowly.
past form of “chuck” — throw carelessly
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
(of hair) making curls or having been made to curl
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
an expectation
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading It was finished now.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was finished now.
set down according to a plan
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
in motion
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading It was finished now.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
-ing form of “rest” — not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
plural of “sack” — a bag made of paper or plastic for holding customer's purchases
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
the place where some action occurs
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading The wagon came on slowly.
a very small spot
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Bonaparte stood on the ash-heap.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He espied across the plain a moving speck and he chucked his coat-tails up and down in expectancy of a scene.
any of various kinds of wheeled vehicles drawn by an animal or a tractor
From this reading The wagon came on slowly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Waldo laid curled among the sacks at the back of the wagon, the hand in his breast resting on the sheep-shearing machine.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was finished now.
Chapter 9 of The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner holds 200 sentences, grouped into 40 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 9 holds 200 sentences of The Story of an African Farm, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 9 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 Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6299 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1441 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1441, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 524 minutes of reading across 1260 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Story of an African Farm section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of The Story of an African Farm 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 Story of an African Farm, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
