Chapter 1 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate. "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom. "Is someone hurt?" Mr. Swift wanted to know. "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
Chapter 1 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 135 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “"He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.”
kill in large numbers
From this reading “With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.”
plural of “glance” — a quick look
From this reading “With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.”
past form of “question” — challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading “"What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.”
a unit of absorbed ionizing radiation equal to 100 ergs per gram of irradiated material
From this reading “"What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.”
a person, without saying who
From this reading “"Is someone hurt?"”
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading “With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.”
an old word meaning “from where”
From this reading “With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
plural of “cry” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
kill in large numbers
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
plural of “glance” — a quick look
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
be the source of pain
From this reading "Is someone hurt?"
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Mr. Swift wanted to know.
a room where books are kept
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. Swift wanted to know.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
past form of “question” — challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.
a unit of absorbed ionizing radiation equal to 100 ergs per gram of irradiated material
From this reading "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.
done under pressure
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
a person, without saying who
From this reading "Is someone hurt?"
in the near future
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
moving very fast
From this reading Mr. Swift wanted to know.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
male cat
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading Mr. Swift wanted to know.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What is it, Rad! what is it?" questioned Tom.
an old word meaning “from where”
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "He mighty soon will be!" exclaimed the colored man.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With startled glances at each other, Tom and his father rushed from the library to the side of the house, whence came the cries of Eradicate.
Chapter 1 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone by Victor Appleton holds 135 sentences, grouped into 27 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 1 holds 135 sentences of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone by Victor Appleton exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 135 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 1 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 Photo Telephone by Victor Appleton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3297 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4532 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4532, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 274 minutes of reading across 660 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone 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 Photo Telephone, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
