Chapter 6 of The Underdogs is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Underdogs is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major." He clasped his hands together, jubilant. At this precise moment, a detonation rang out. His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?" Demetrio asked.
Chapter 6 of The Underdogs is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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 narrow street with walls on both sides
From this reading “His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"”
past form of “buzz” — make a buzzing sound
From this reading “His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"”
enclose in a corral
From this reading “His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"”
a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading “At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.”
joyful and proud especially because of triumph or success
From this reading “He clasped his hands together, jubilant.”
past form of “muse” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading “"Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."”
sharply exact or accurate or delimited
From this reading “At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.”
past form of “promote” — contribute to the progress or growth of
From this reading “"Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."”
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 At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
a narrow street with walls on both sides
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Demetrio asked.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
past form of “buzz” — make a buzzing sound
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
past form of “clasp” — hold firmly and tightly
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
enclose in a corral
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Demetrio asked.
a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
plural of “ear” — the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
joyful and proud especially because of triumph or success
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
engage in
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
a particular point in time
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
past form of “muse” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
sharply exact or accurate or delimited
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
past form of “promote” — contribute to the progress or growth of
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
inflected form of “ring” — sound loudly and sonorously
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading At this precise moment, a detonation rang out.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading He clasped his hands together, jubilant.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
the cardinal number that is the sum of sixteen and one
From this reading His ears buzzed, he-- XVII "If we get through the corral, we can make the alley, eh?"
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading "Well," the young captain mused, "I'll be promoted to major."
Chapter 6 of The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela holds 221 sentences, grouped into 45 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 221 sentences of The Underdogs, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 221 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 Underdogs by Mariano Azuela on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3037 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #549 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #549, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 253 minutes of reading across 608 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Underdogs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Underdogs 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 Underdogs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
