Chapter 6 of The Thing Beyond Reason is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Thing Beyond Reason is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Mr. Houseman!” she cried. There was no answer. She stared about her, numb with terror. What was it that rustled like that? What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
Chapter 6 of The Thing Beyond Reason is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
react verbally
From this reading “There was no answer.”
an advanced student or graduate in medicine gaining supervised practical experience (“houseman” is a British term)
From this reading ““Mr. Houseman!” she cried.”
not in physical motion
From this reading “What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?”
lacking sensation
From this reading “She stared about her, numb with terror.”
having a supporting base
From this reading “What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “She stared about her, numb with terror.”
great in vertical dimension; high in stature
From this reading “What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?”
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading “She stared about her, numb with terror.”
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 “She stared about her, numb with terror.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
react verbally
From this reading There was no answer.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “Mr. Houseman!” she cried.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
an advanced student or graduate in medicine gaining supervised practical experience (“houseman” is a British term)
From this reading “Mr. Houseman!” she cried.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What was it that rustled like that?
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading What was it that rustled like that?
not in physical motion
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
a form of address for a man
From this reading “Mr. Houseman!” she cried.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no answer.
lacking sensation
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What was it that rustled like that?
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Mr. Houseman!” she cried.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
having a supporting base
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
great in vertical dimension; high in stature
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading What was it that rustled like that?
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no answer.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was no answer.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading What were these black, tall things that were standing motionless about her on every side?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What was it that rustled like that?
in the company of; together with
From this reading She stared about her, numb with terror.
Chapter 6 of The Thing Beyond Reason by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding holds 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 432 sentences of The Thing Beyond Reason, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Thing Beyond Reason by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 Thing Beyond Reason by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3802 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #67429 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #67429, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 316 minutes of reading across 761 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Thing Beyond Reason section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Thing Beyond Reason 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 Thing Beyond Reason, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
