Chapter 17 of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 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 in the Caves of Ice is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom? What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels. "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor. "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light. Then we can see what we are doing."
Chapter 17 of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
a close friend who accompanies his buddies in their activities
From this reading “What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.”
a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion
From this reading “What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.”
plural of “lever” — a rigid bar pivoted about a fulcrum
From this reading “What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.”
an odorous glandular secretion from the male musk deer; used as a perfume fixative
From this reading “A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?”
English mathematician and physicist; remembered for developing the calculus and for his law of gravitation and his three laws of motion (1642-1727)
From this reading “What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.”
domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age
From this reading “A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?”
the act of storing something
From this reading “"I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.”
-ing form of “yank” — pull, or move with a sudden movement
From this reading “What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.”
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 A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
group of guns or missile launchers operated together at one place
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
a close friend who accompanies his buddies in their activities
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
someone who is the first to think of or make something
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
plural of “lever” — a rigid bar pivoted about a fulcrum
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
an odorous glandular secretion from the male musk deer; used as a perfume fixative
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
English mathematician and physicist; remembered for developing the calculus and for his law of gravitation and his three laws of motion (1642-1727)
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
done under pressure
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
the act of storing something
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
propel through the air
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
male cat
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
of many different kinds purposefully arranged but lacking any uniformity
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Then we can see what we are doing."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
plural of “wheel” — a simple machine consisting of a circular frame with spokes (or a solid disc) that can rotate on a shaft or axle (as in vehicles or other machines)
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
in or at the place that
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "I want to throw on the storage battery, and that will give us some light.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
-ing form of “yank” — pull, or move with a sudden movement
From this reading What's to be done?" demanded Ned Newton, as he rushed to where his chum was yanking on various levers and gear wheels.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN "Can I help you, Tom?
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading "Wait a minute!" gasped the young inventor.
Chapter 17 of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice by Victor Appleton holds 126 sentences, grouped into 26 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 126 sentences of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice by Victor Appleton exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 126 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 in the Caves of Ice by Victor Appleton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2826 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3734 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3734, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 235 minutes of reading across 566 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice 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 in the Caves of Ice, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
