Chapter 29 of The Top of the World is here in full — 228 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of The Top of the World is here in full — 228 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before. His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness. She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth. It was she who spoke first. The silence seemed so impossible.
Chapter 29 of The Top of the World is here in full — 228 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/45 · 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.
the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
From this reading “THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.”
a cruel act; a deliberate infliction of pain and suffering
From this reading “She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.”
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading “THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.”
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading “His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.”
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading “The silence seemed so impossible.”
having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
From this reading “His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.”
and nothing more
From this reading “THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.”
successfully completed or brought to an end
From this reading “She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.”
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 His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
react verbally
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
a cruel act; a deliberate infliction of pain and suffering
From this reading She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
opinion or judgment
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
the property of being wild or turbulent
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading It was she who spoke first.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading The silence seemed so impossible.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was she who spoke first.
having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
and nothing more
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
successfully completed or brought to an end
From this reading She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The silence seemed so impossible.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading The silence seemed so impossible.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The silence seemed so impossible.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
express in speech
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading It was she who spoke first.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
in or at that place or location
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading She thought she had never before realized the cruelty of his mouth.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE COST He did not speak in answer to her exclamation, merely stood there looking at her, almost as if he had never seen her before.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was she who spoke first.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
which person or people
From this reading It was she who spoke first.
in the company of; together with
From this reading His eyes were keen with a sort of icy fierceness.
Chapter 29 of The Top of the World by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell holds 228 sentences, grouped into 46 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 29 holds 228 sentences of The Top of the World, unabridged, divided into 46 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 of The Top of the World by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 228 sentences, grouped into 46 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 46 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 46 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 29 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 Top of the World by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10126 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12360 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12360, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2026 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Top of the World section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Top of the World 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 Top of the World, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
