Chapter 5 of The White Hand and the Black is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The White Hand and the Black is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said. "The new war-song? Listen. This is how it runs." But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
Chapter 5 of The White Hand and the Black is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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 native or inhabitant of Europe
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
plural of “hoof” — the foot of an ungulate mammal
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
temporary military shelter
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
vigorously passionate
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
plural of “run” — a score in baseball made by a runner touching all four bases safely
From this reading “This is how it runs."”
the sound of heavy treading or stomping
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
communicated in words
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
a member of the tall Negroid people of eastern South Africa; some live in KwaZulu-Natal under the traditional clan system but many now work in the cities
From this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
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 “"Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.”
In this reading “But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.”
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 But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
a person who is in charge
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
a native or inhabitant of Europe
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
without fault or error
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
plural of “hoof” — the foot of an ungulate mammal
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This is how it runs."
temporary military shelter
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This is how it runs."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading This is how it runs."
hear with intention
From this reading Listen.
vigorously passionate
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
plural of “run” — a score in baseball made by a runner touching all four bases safely
From this reading This is how it runs."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
a short musical composition with words
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This is how it runs."
in spite of the fact that
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the sound of heavy treading or stomping
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
communicated in words
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "The new war-song?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the words that are spoken
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Have you heard, my father; the new song that the people have made?" he said.
a member of the tall Negroid people of eastern South Africa; some live in KwaZulu-Natal under the traditional clan system but many now work in the cities
From this reading But before he had uttered three words of it a trampling of hoofs was heard outside the hut, and a lusty European voice--though speaking faultless Zulu--enquiring which was the hut of the chief.
Chapter 5 of The White Hand and the Black by Bertram Mitford holds 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 5 holds 396 sentences of The White Hand and the Black, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The White Hand and the Black by Bertram Mitford exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 5 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 White Hand and the Black by Bertram Mitford on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5671 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #32911 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #32911, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 472 minutes of reading across 1135 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The White Hand and the Black section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The White Hand and the Black 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 White Hand and the Black, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
