Chapter 12 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I don’t think so." "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one." "But they affect other people." He shrugged his shoulders. "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
Chapter 12 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 399 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.
have an effect upon
From this reading “"The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."”
remove the dust from
From this reading “"The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."”
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading “"They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.”
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading “"They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.”
concerned chiefly or only with yourself and your advantage to the exclusion of others
From this reading “"They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.”
plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm
From this reading “He shrugged his shoulders.”
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading “He shrugged his shoulders.”
the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form
From this reading “"The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."”
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 “"But they affect other people."”
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.
have an effect upon
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But they affect other people."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don’t think so."
remove the dust from
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He shrugged his shoulders.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He shrugged his shoulders.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don’t think so."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "But they affect other people."
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "But they affect other people."
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
concerned chiefly or only with yourself and your advantage to the exclusion of others
From this reading "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm
From this reading He shrugged his shoulders.
inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation
From this reading He shrugged his shoulders.
the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "I don’t think so."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "But they affect other people."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading "They’re real selfish things!" he laughed.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I don’t think so."
at the time that
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "The dust—the smell—" "Don’t affect you when you’re in one."
Chapter 12 of The Young O'Briens by Margaret Westrup holds 399 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 12 holds 399 sentences of The Young O'Briens, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Young O'Briens by Margaret Westrup exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 399 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 12 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 O'Briens by Margaret Westrup on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8807 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45324 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45324, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1762 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Young O'Briens section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Young O'Briens 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 O'Briens, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
