Chapter 9 of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets. I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along. “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?” “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.” While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
Chapter 9 of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
stick to firmly
From this reading ““Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.””
plural of “bullet” — a projectile that is fired from a gun
From this reading “What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.”
praise vociferously
From this reading “What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.”
a waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric
From this reading “I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.”
add pepper to
From this reading “While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.”
tear or be torn violently
From this reading ““Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.””
plural of “shell” — ammunition consisting of a cylindrical metal casing containing an explosive charge and a projectile; fired from a large gun
From this reading “What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.”
(usually in the plural) a garment extending from the waist to the knee or ankle, covering each leg separately
From this reading ““Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.””
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.
come into being or existence, or appear on the scene
In this reading “I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.”
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 What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
stick to firmly
From this reading “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.”
plural of “bullet” — a projectile that is fired from a gun
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.”
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
put on clothes
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
praise vociferously
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?”
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.”
past form of “help” — give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
an expression of greeting
From this reading “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
a waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
add pepper to
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
tear or be torn violently
From this reading “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?”
plural of “shell” — ammunition consisting of a cylindrical metal casing containing an explosive charge and a projectile; fired from a large gun
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
in or at that place or location
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
(usually in the plural) a garment extending from the waist to the knee or ankle, covering each leg separately
From this reading “Rip up my trousers,” I cried, “and help me to bind my knee.”
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Hullo,” he said, “what’s up?”
at the time that
From this reading I had been lying there for half an hour when Mac came along.
during the time that
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
in the company of; together with
From this reading While we were getting on with the job the shells started to pepper about.
an injury to living tissue (especially an injury involving a cut or break in the skin)
From this reading What McCabe Did McCabe helped me to dress my knee wound under a hail of shells and bullets.
Chapter 9 of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins by James Milne holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 9 holds 419 sentences of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins by James Milne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 9 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 War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins by James Milne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4169 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52142 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52142, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 347 minutes of reading across 834 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins 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 War Stories of Private Thomas Atkins, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
