Chapter 24 of To Have and to Hold is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIV
Chapter 24 of To Have and to Hold is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast. The weather changed. One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between. Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost. All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
Chapter 24 of To Have and to Hold is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading “All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.”
past form of “ebb” — flow back or recede
From this reading “THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.”
a large medieval vessel with a single deck propelled by sails and oars with guns at stern and prow; a complement of 1,000 men; used mainly in the Mediterranean for war and trading
From this reading “All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.”
a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds moving at 63-136 knots (12 on the Beaufort scale)
From this reading “One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.”
plural of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading “All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.”
a step in walking or running
From this reading “One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.”
the periodic rise and fall of the sea level under the gravitational pull of the moon
From this reading “THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.”
past form of “toil” — work hard
From this reading “All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.”
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 One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
in addition
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading The weather changed.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
past form of “ebb” — flow back or recede
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
a large medieval vessel with a single deck propelled by sails and oars with guns at stern and prow; a complement of 1,000 men; used mainly in the Mediterranean for war and trading
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds moving at 63-136 knots (12 on the Beaufort scale)
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
many times at short intervals
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
and nothing more
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
the one or ones belonging to us
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
plural of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
transport commercially
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
plural of “slave” — a person who is owned by someone
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
a step in walking or running
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
in or at that place or location
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
the periodic rise and fall of the sea level under the gravitational pull of the moon
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
past form of “toil” — work hard
From this reading All hands toiled like galley slaves; and as the heavens darkened, there darkened also the mood of the pirates.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Ofttimes we thought the ship was lost.
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading The weather changed.
at the time that
From this reading THE luck that had been ours could not hold; when the tide turned, it ebbed fast.
in the company of; together with
From this reading One hurricane followed upon the stride of another, with only a blue day or two between.
Chapter 24 of To Have and to Hold by Mary Johnston holds 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 24 holds 176 sentences of To Have and to Hold, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 24 of To Have and to Hold by Mary Johnston exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 24 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 To Have and to Hold by Mary Johnston on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6788 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2807 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2807, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 565 minutes of reading across 1358 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through To Have and to Hold section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of To Have and to Hold 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 To Have and to Hold, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
