Chapter 14 of The Wonder Island Boys is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of The Wonder Island Boys is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present. "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John. "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply. Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over. There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
Chapter 14 of The Wonder Island Boys is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
plural of “castaway” — a person who is rejected (from society or home)
From this reading “"Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.”
possessive form of “chief” — a person who is in charge
From this reading “A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.”
a slight indication
From this reading “There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.”
a body of people who settle far from home but maintain ties with their homeland; inhabitants remain nationals of their home state but are not literally under the home state's system of government
From this reading “A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.”
a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
From this reading “A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.”
weight to be borne or conveyed
From this reading “"Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.”
a small fragment of something broken off from the whole
From this reading “Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.”
the remaining parts of something that has been wrecked
From this reading “Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.”
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 CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
any thing at all
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
a small vessel for travel on water
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
plural of “castaway” — a person who is rejected (from society or home)
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
possessive form of “chief” — a person who is in charge
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
a slight indication
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
a body of people who settle far from home but maintain ties with their homeland; inhabitants remain nationals of their home state but are not literally under the home state's system of government
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
at any time
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
obtain
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
weight to be borne or conveyed
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
the property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
plural of “native” — an indigenous person who was born in a particular place
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
above and across; more than
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
a small fragment of something broken off from the whole
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
superlative of “slight” — (quantifier used with mass nouns) small in quantity or degree; not much or almost none or (with “a”) at least some
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
a male human offspring
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
capable of being seen; or open to easy view
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A CONVICT COLONY OF NATIVES The Chief's son was present.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We never knew of anything like that," was his reply.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading There was nothing else visible by which they could gain the slightest clue.
the remaining parts of something that has been wrecked
From this reading Every scrap in that mass of wreckage was gone over.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Did you ever know of a boat load of castaways on the island?" asked John.
Chapter 14 of The Wonder Island Boys by Roger T. (Roger Thompson) Finlay holds 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 14 holds 168 sentences of The Wonder Island Boys, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of The Wonder Island Boys by Roger T. (Roger Thompson) Finlay exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 14 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Wonder Island Boys section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Wonder Island Boys 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 Wonder Island Boys, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
