Chapter 21 of The Telegraph Boy is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of The Telegraph Boy is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME. One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent. "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said. "Have you one you can recommend?" The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
Chapter 21 of The Telegraph Boy is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading “"I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.”
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading “One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.”
having your services engaged for; or having a job especially one that pays wages or a salary
From this reading “One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.”
conduct an interview in television, newspaper, and radio reporting
From this reading “One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.”
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading “A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.”
push for something
From this reading “"Have you one you can recommend?"”
showing mental alertness and calculation and resourcefulness
From this reading “"I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.”
a person who directs and manages an organization
From this reading “One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.”
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 A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
a youthful male person
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Have you one you can recommend?"
put or send forth
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
having your services engaged for; or having a job especially one that pays wages or a salary
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
opinion or judgment
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
a man of refinement
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Have you one you can recommend?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
conduct an interview in television, newspaper, and radio reporting
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading A NEW JOB, AND A LETTER FROM HOME.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
above and across; more than
From this reading The superintendent cast his eyes over the line of boys, and called Frank.
push for something
From this reading "Have you one you can recommend?"
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
showing mental alertness and calculation and resourcefulness
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
that is looked for
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
a person who directs and manages an organization
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
in the company of; together with
From this reading One morning an elderly gentleman entered the office in which Frank was employed, and sought an interview with the superintendent.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading "I want a smart boy for detective work," he said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Have you one you can recommend?"
Chapter 21 of The Telegraph Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 holds 104 sentences of The Telegraph Boy, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of The Telegraph Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 21 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 Telegraph Boy by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Telegraph Boy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Telegraph Boy 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 Telegraph Boy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
