Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon. "That face!" "I don't know," answered the young inventor. "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus. We must follow him."
Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
give a benediction to
From this reading “Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.”
the friend of Phintias who pledged his life that Phintias would return (4th century BC)
From this reading “Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.”
move deeply
From this reading “"But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.”
plural of “experiment” — the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation
From this reading “Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.”
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading “Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.”
someone who is the first to think of or make something
From this reading “"I don't know," answered the young inventor.”
a Greek disciple and helper of Saint Paul
From this reading “"But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.”
possessive form of “tom” — male cat
From this reading “Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.”
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.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
give a benediction to
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
the friend of Phintias who pledged his life that Phintias would return (4th century BC)
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
move deeply
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
plural of “experiment” — the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading "That face!"
to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading We must follow him."
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading We must follow him."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
someone who is the first to think of or make something
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading We must follow him."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
an instance of visual perception
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
a Greek disciple and helper of Saint Paul
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "But the sight of some one looking in here seemed to disturb Mr. Titus.
male cat
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
possessive form of “tom” — male cat
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We must follow him."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Tom's Experiments "Bless my looking glass, Tom, what does that mean?" exclaimed Mr. Damon.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading "I don't know," answered the young inventor.
Chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel by Victor Appleton holds 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 4 holds 168 sentences of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel by Victor Appleton exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel by Victor Appleton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3230 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #953 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #953, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 269 minutes of reading across 646 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel 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 Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
