Chapter 18 of The viaduct murder is here in full — 157 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The viaduct murder is here in full — 157 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood. “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out. The thing doesn’t work.” “Doesn’t work?” “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
Chapter 18 of The viaduct murder is here in full — 157 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
past form of “chasten” — censure severely
From this reading “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
a fictitious detective in stories by A. Conan Doyle
From this reading “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success
From this reading ““No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.”
plural of “idea” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading ““I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.”
a way of doing something, especially a systematic way; implies an orderly logical arrangement (usually in steps)
From this reading “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
plural of “snag” — a sharp protuberance
From this reading ““No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.”
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 “The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.”
In this reading ““I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.”
In this reading ““I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.”
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 The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
past form of “chasten” — censure severely
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The thing doesn’t work.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
a fictitious detective in stories by A. Conan Doyle
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
plural of “idea” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
immediately past
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
a way of doing something, especially a systematic way; implies an orderly logical arrangement (usually in steps)
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
above and across; more than
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
plural of “snag” — a sharp protuberance
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
in or at that place or location
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
a special situation
From this reading The thing doesn’t work.”
the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I was thinking over our ideas last night in bed, and I see that it’s all a wash-out.
at the time that
From this reading The Holmes Method When they met at breakfast next morning, Gordon was in a chastened mood.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading “No, there are two snags which seem to me hopeless.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading The thing doesn’t work.”
Chapter 18 of The viaduct murder by Ronald Arbuthnott Knox holds 157 sentences, grouped into 32 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 18 holds 157 sentences of The viaduct murder, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The viaduct murder by Ronald Arbuthnott Knox exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 157 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 18 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 viaduct murder by Ronald Arbuthnott Knox on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3680 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #72585 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #72585, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 306 minutes of reading across 736 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The viaduct murder section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of The viaduct murder 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 viaduct murder, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
