Chapter 1 of The Trouble with Truth is here in full — 537 sentences across 108 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Trouble with Truth is here in full — 537 sentences across 108 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Nobody knows where it will end. I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago! "The WPA stinks," Sara said. Now, I've known Sara four year. We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
Chapter 1 of The Trouble with Truth is here in full — 537 sentences across 108 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/107 · 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.
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
the state of being a married couple voluntarily joined for life (or until divorce)
From this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
joined in matrimony
From this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
the state of being a married couple voluntarily joined for life (or until divorce)
From this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
no person; not anyone
From this reading “Nobody knows where it will end.”
plural of “stink” — a distinctive odor that is offensively unpleasant
From this reading “"The WPA stinks," Sara said.”
being four more than twenty
From this reading “I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!”
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.
by a factor of three
In this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
In this reading “Now, I've known Sara four year.”
In this reading “We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.”
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.
in the past
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading Now, I've known Sara four year.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Now, I've known Sara four year.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
apprehended with certainty
From this reading Now, I've known Sara four year.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
the state of being a married couple voluntarily joined for life (or until divorce)
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
joined in matrimony
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
the state of being a married couple voluntarily joined for life (or until divorce)
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
no person; not anyone
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Now, I've known Sara four year.
on one occasion
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
and nothing more
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "The WPA stinks," Sara said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "The WPA stinks," Sara said.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
plural of “stink” — a distinctive odor that is offensively unpleasant
From this reading "The WPA stinks," Sara said.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "The WPA stinks," Sara said.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
being four more than twenty
From this reading I only know where it began--in Rutlan--twenty-four hours ago!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading We've been engaged three times and married once--only marriage, not matrimony--so I pretty much know what to expect from her.
in or at the place that
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading Nobody knows where it will end.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "The WPA stinks," Sara said.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Now, I've known Sara four year.
Chapter 1 of The Trouble with Truth by Julian F. Grow holds 537 sentences, grouped into 108 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 1 holds 537 sentences of The Trouble with Truth, unabridged, divided into 108 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Trouble with Truth by Julian F. Grow exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 537 sentences, grouped into 108 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 108 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 108 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 1 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 Trouble with Truth by Julian F. Grow on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 537 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #53123 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #53123, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 44 minutes of reading across 108 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Trouble with Truth section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The Trouble with Truth 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 Trouble with Truth, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
