Chapter 4 of The Young Circus Rider is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Young Circus Rider is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS. "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully. "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently. "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly. "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
Chapter 4 of The Young Circus Rider is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
propose a payment
From this reading “"I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.”
a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals
From this reading “TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.”
a lawman with less authority and jurisdiction than a sheriff
From this reading “TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.”
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading “"I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."”
with impatience; in an impatient manner
From this reading “"What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.”
involving risk or danger
From this reading “"I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."”
in a rueful manner
From this reading “"I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.”
in a grave and sedate manner
From this reading “"We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.”
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.
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 "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
propose a payment
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
a lawman with less authority and jurisdiction than a sheriff
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
a farewell remark
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
come to pass
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
with impatience; in an impatient manner
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
involving risk or danger
From this reading "I'm ready to do my duty by the gover'ment; but it's a risky business, arrestin' a giant."
in a rueful manner
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
in a grave and sedate manner
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading TARBOX AND THE CONSTABLE GO TO THE CIRCUS.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "We don't know what may happen," said Spriggins, solemnly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What's the need of that?" asked Tarbox, impatiently.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading "I think I'll go in and bid my wife good-by," said the constable, ruefully.
Chapter 4 of The Young Circus Rider by Horatio, Jr. [Adapter] Alger holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 4 holds 118 sentences of The Young Circus Rider, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Young Circus Rider by Horatio, Jr. [Adapter] Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 4 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 Young Circus Rider by Horatio, Jr. [Adapter] Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3234 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56056 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56056, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 269 minutes of reading across 647 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Young Circus Rider section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Young Circus Rider 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 Young Circus Rider, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
