Chapter 15 of The Village Champion is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of The Village Champion is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions. Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.” “Who got it?” asked the miller. “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb. “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
Chapter 15 of The Village Champion is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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 member of the aristocracy
From this reading ““A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.”
intending or showing kindness
From this reading “THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.”
past form of “bloat” — become bloated or swollen or puff up
From this reading ““A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.”
plural of “boarder” — a tenant in someone's house
From this reading ““I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.”
beaten or overcome; not victorious
From this reading “THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.”
horse of a dull brownish grey color
From this reading “THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.”
young cow
From this reading “THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-one and one
From this reading “Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.””
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 ““A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.”
In this reading ““A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.”
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 “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
a member of the aristocracy
From this reading “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Who got it?” asked the miller.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
intending or showing kindness
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
past form of “bloat” — become bloated or swollen or puff up
From this reading “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
plural of “boarder” — a tenant in someone's house
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
beaten or overcome; not victorious
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
plural of “dollar” — the basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
horse of a dull brownish grey color
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “Who got it?” asked the miller.
young cow
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
plural of “intention” — an anticipated outcome that is intended or that guides your planned actions
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Who got it?” asked the miller.
United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
imagine to be the case or true or probable
From this reading “I suspect him of being one of the new boarders.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
the cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-one and one
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Puff’s boat went for twenty-two dollars.”
which person or people
From this reading “Who got it?” asked the miller.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “A bloated young aristocrat from the city,” said Zeb.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MYSTERY OF THE DUN HEIFER “Brother Todderley,” said Zeb to the miller, “we’re defeated in our benevolent intentions.
Chapter 15 of The Village Champion by William O. Stoddard holds 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 15 holds 148 sentences of The Village Champion, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of The Village Champion by William O. Stoddard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 15 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 Village Champion by William O. Stoddard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4300 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56933 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56933, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 358 minutes of reading across 860 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Village Champion section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Village Champion 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 Village Champion, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
