Chapter 6 of The Sundial is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Sundial is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name. I did it directly I got the news. You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way." "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured. "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
Chapter 6 of The Sundial is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
past form of “confess” — confess to a punishable or reprehensible deed, usually under pressure
From this reading “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
without deviation
From this reading “I did it directly I got the news.”
The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions on one's way of life.
From this reading “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading “"Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.”
information about recent and important events
From this reading “I did it directly I got the news.”
let for money
From this reading “"Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.”
the act of causing something to go (especially messages)
From this reading “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
a message transmitted by telegraph
From this reading “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
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 “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
In this reading “"To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.”
introducing a different topic
In this reading “"By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?”
In this reading “"By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?”
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 "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
prior to a specified or implied time
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
past form of “confess” — confess to a punishable or reprehensible deed, usually under pressure
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading I did it directly I got the news.
without deviation
From this reading I did it directly I got the news.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading I did it directly I got the news.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I did it directly I got the news.
The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions on one's way of life.
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
information about recent and important events
From this reading I did it directly I got the news.
not any; not one
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.
let for money
From this reading "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.
precisely, exactly
From this reading "Quite right," Mrs. Rent murmured.
express in words
From this reading "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
the act of causing something to go (especially messages)
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
a message transmitted by telegraph
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
express in words
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
in or at that place or location
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
a fact that has been verified
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading "By the way, what did you say was the name of this woman?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You see, there was no time to be lost, and they might already be on their way."
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "To tell the truth," Westlake confessed, "I have already taken the liberty of sending a telegram in your name.
Chapter 6 of The Sundial by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 6 holds 406 sentences of The Sundial, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Sundial by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 6 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 Sundial by Fred M. (Fred Merrick) White on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6094 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55006 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55006, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 507 minutes of reading across 1219 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Sundial section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of The Sundial 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 Sundial, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
