Chapter 17 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do. It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of. What did the mysterious message mean? He must think it all out, and plan some line of action. Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
Chapter 17 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading “He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.”
without doubt or question
From this reading “Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.”
the friend of Phintias who pledged his life that Phintias would return (4th century BC)
From this reading “Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.”
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading “What did the mysterious message mean?”
of an obscure nature
From this reading “What did the mysterious message mean?”
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading “He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.”
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading “It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.”
moving very fast
From this reading “ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.”
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 It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
(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 He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
without doubt or question
From this reading Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
the friend of Phintias who pledged his life that Phintias would return (4th century BC)
From this reading Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading What did the mysterious message mean?
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading What did the mysterious message mean?
a particular point in time
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
of an obscure nature
From this reading What did the mysterious message mean?
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Clearly Mrs. Damon was not able to do so.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
moving very fast
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading He must think it all out, and plan some line of action.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
male cat
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a strange situation, and one he had never thought of.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading ANOTHER CALL Tom Swift, for the moment, did not know what to do.
Chapter 17 of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone by Victor Appleton holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 17 holds 118 sentences of Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 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 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 17 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.
