Chapter 8 of Three Soldiers is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Three Soldiers is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Dijon,” read Andrews. On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians. “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins. “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians. There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
Chapter 8 of Three Soldiers is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
United States naturalist who contributed to paleontology and geology (1884-1960)
From this reading ““Dijon,” read Andrews.”
plural of “civilian” — a nonmilitary citizen
From this reading “On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.”
plural of “coat” — an outer garment that has sleeves and covers the body from shoulder down; worn outdoors
From this reading “On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.”
an industrial city in eastern France to the north of Lyons
From this reading ““Dijon,” read Andrews.”
a unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity; used to indicate the force to which a body is subjected when it is accelerated
From this reading ““Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.”
expletives used informally as intensifiers
From this reading ““Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.”
beyond or across the sea
From this reading ““Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.”
a small number (of something) dispersed haphazardly
From this reading “On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.”
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 On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
United States naturalist who contributed to paleontology and geology (1884-1960)
From this reading “Dijon,” read Andrews.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
civilian garb as opposed to a military uniform
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
plural of “civilian” — a nonmilitary citizen
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
plural of “coat” — an outer garment that has sleeves and covers the body from shoulder down; worn outdoors
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
an industrial city in eastern France to the north of Lyons
From this reading “Dijon,” read Andrews.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
your parents
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
a unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity; used to indicate the force to which a body is subjected when it is accelerated
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
expletives used informally as intensifiers
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
beyond or across the sea
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
a raised horizontal surface
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Those goddam country people down at Polignac didn't look like real civilians.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading “Dijon,” read Andrews.
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
plural of “soldier” — an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
a small number (of something) dispersed haphazardly
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading “Gee, those are about the first real civies I've seen since I came overseas,” said Judkins.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading On the platform were French soldiers in their blue coats and a good sprinkling of civilians.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading There's folks dressed like it was New York.”
Chapter 8 of Three Soldiers by John Dos Passos holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 8 holds 409 sentences of Three Soldiers, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Three Soldiers by John Dos Passos exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 8 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 Three Soldiers by John Dos Passos on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10744 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6362 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6362, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2149 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Three Soldiers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of Three Soldiers 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 Three Soldiers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
