Tom Swift and His Air Glider

Chapter IV · Chapter 4

Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Victor Appleton • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for Tom Swift and His Air Glider

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

That some one in far-off Russia--be it the Czar or one of the secret police--could operate from such a distance, seeking out a man in an obscure house in a little American village, and snatching him away.

"It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.

"What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

Narrator

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Chapter IV Reading 1/18

Tom Swift and His Air Glider

Chapter IV · Chapter 4

Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/18 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

Line 2

It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

/ɪt ˈskersli siːmd ˈpɑːsəbəl ðæt sʌtʃ ə θɪŋ kʊd ˈhæpən/

Line 3

Line 4

"It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.

Line 5

"What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

/wʌt ˈdɪfərəns dʌz ðæt meɪk æskt tɑːm/

Learner Dictionary

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.

breathlessly adverb US /ˈbreθləsli/

in a breathless manner

From this reading “"It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.”

Czar noun US /zɑːr/

a male monarch or emperor (especially of Russia prior to 1917)

From this reading “That some one in far-off Russia--be it the Czar or one of the secret police--could operate from such a distance, seeking out a man in an obscure house in a little American village, and snatching him away.”

obscure verb US /əbsˈkjʊr/

make less visible or unclear

operate verb US /ˈɑːpəreɪt/

direct or control; projects, businesses, etc.

police noun US /pəˈliːs/

the force of policemen and officers

Russia noun US /ˈrʌʃə/

a former communist country in eastern Europe and northern Asia; established in 1922; included Russia and 14 other soviet socialist republics (Ukraine and Byelorussia and others); officially dissolved 31 December 1991

seeking noun US /ˈsiːkɪŋ/

the act of searching for something

snatching verb US /ˈsnætʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “snatch” — to grasp hastily or eagerly

All words in this reading · 53

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

AmericannounUS /əˈmerəkən/

a native or inhabitant of the United States

From this reading That some one in far-off Russia--be it the Czar or one of the secret police--could operate from such a distance, seeking out a man in an obscure house in a little American village, and snatching him away.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

askedverbUS /æskt/

past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody

From this reading "What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

awayadverbUS /əˈweɪ/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

breathlesslyadverbUS /ˈbreθləsli/

in a breathless manner

From this reading "It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

CzarnounUS /zɑːr/

a male monarch or emperor (especially of Russia prior to 1917)

declaredadjectiveUS /dɪˈklerd/

made known or openly avowed

From this reading "It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.

differencenounUS /ˈdɪfərəns/

the quality of being unlike or dissimilar

From this reading "What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

distancenounUS /ˈdɪstəns/

the property created by the space between two objects or points

doesauxiliary verbUS /dʌz/

the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading "What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

far-offadjective

very far away in space or time

ForprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

happenverbUS /ˈhæpən/

come to pass

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

housenounUS /haʊs/

a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

isn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "It isn't possible!" declared Ned breathlessly.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

littleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

makeverbUS /meɪk/

engage in

From this reading "What difference does that make?" asked Tom.

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

meantverbUS /ment/

inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

momentnounUS /ˈmoʊmənt/

a particular point in time

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

Ned

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

obscureverbUS /əbsˈkjʊr/

make less visible or unclear

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

operateverbUS /ˈɑːpəreɪt/

direct or control; projects, businesses, etc.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

policenounUS /pəˈliːs/

the force of policemen and officers

possibleadjectiveUS /ˈpɑːsəbəl/

capable of happening or existing

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

RussianounUS /ˈrʌʃə/

scarcelyadverbUS /ˈskersli/

only a very short time before

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

SEARCHverbUS /sɜːrtʃ/

try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

secretnounUS /ˈsiː.krət/

Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.

seekingnounUS /ˈsiːkɪŋ/

the act of searching for something

seemedverbUS /siːmd/

past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

snatchingverbUS /ˈsnætʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “snatch” — to grasp hastily or eagerly

someadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

thingnounUS /θɪŋ/

a special situation

From this reading It scarcely seemed possible that such a thing could happen.

TomnounUS /tɑːm/

male cat

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

understandverbUS /ˌʌndərˈstænd/

know and comprehend the nature or meaning of

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

villagenounUS /ˈvɪlədʒ/

a community of people smaller than a town

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading THE SEARCH For a moment Ned could scarcely understand what Tom meant.

Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider by Victor Appleton holds 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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.

What does chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider contain?

Chapter 4 holds 90 sentences of Tom Swift and His Air Glider, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider by Victor Appleton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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.

How do I study chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Air Glider?

Work through the 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 18 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.

Can chapter 4 be read aloud to me?

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.

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Common questions about reading Tom Swift and His Air Glider by Victor Appleton on this page, its source edition and its audio.

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Yes. All 2853 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #952 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #952, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 237 minutes of reading across 571 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Chapter IV · Chapter 4

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