Chapter 8 of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L. 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward. Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead. It was a pitch-dark night. The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
Chapter 8 of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
subject to appointment
From this reading “On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.”
a line of units following one after another
From this reading “Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.”
a detachment used for security or reconnaissance
From this reading “On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.”
past form of “precede” — be earlier in time; go back further
From this reading “Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.”
of or relating to or resembling or expressed in a proverb
From this reading “The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.”
(of winds) coming from the land
From this reading “4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.”
plural of “ship” — a vessel that carries passengers or freight
From this reading “Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.”
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading “The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.”
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.
get rid of
In this reading “4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was a pitch-dark night.
at or in the front
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
subject to appointment
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
put or send forth
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
a line of units following one after another
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a pitch-dark night.
a metric unit of capacity, formerly defined as the volume of one kilogram of pure water under standard conditions; now equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters (or approximately 1.75 pints)
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading It was a pitch-dark night.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
a detachment used for security or reconnaissance
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
extremely dark
From this reading It was a pitch-dark night.
past form of “precede” — be earlier in time; go back further
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
past form of “proceed” — continue talking
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
of or relating to or resembling or expressed in a proverb
From this reading The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
at the expected or proper time
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
(of fluids) moving or issuing in a stream
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
(of winds) coming from the land
From this reading 4452 cast off and proceeded seaward.
plural of “ship” — a vessel that carries passengers or freight
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
having a surface free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities
From this reading The sea was as smooth as the proverbial mill-pond.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading On Patrol Punctually to the appointed minute, M.-L.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a pitch-dark night.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Her sister ships had preceded her, and were running in single column line ahead.
Chapter 8 of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 by Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman holds 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 8 holds 116 sentences of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 by Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 8 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 Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 by Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2443 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45135 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45135, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 203 minutes of reading across 489 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918 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 Thick of the Fray at Zeebrugge, April 1918, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
