Chapter 38 of Tom Thatcher's Fortune is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVIII
Chapter 38 of Tom Thatcher's Fortune is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A DOUBLE SURPRISE. It was ten o’clock in the evening. Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room. Her face was grave and sad. Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
Chapter 38 of Tom Thatcher's Fortune is here in full — 106 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
in a state of sleep
From this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
increase twofold
From this reading “A DOUBLE SURPRISE.”
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
comparative of “faint” — deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading “Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.”
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading “Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.”
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
according to the clock
joining or attaching by stitches
From this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
sleeping deeply
In this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
In this reading “Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.”
In this reading “It was ten o’clock in the evening.”
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 DOUBLE SURPRISE.
anew
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Her face was grave and sad.
in a state of sleep
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
increase twofold
From this reading A DOUBLE SURPRISE.
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Her face was grave and sad.
comparative of “faint” — deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
death of a person
From this reading Her face was grave and sad.
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
according to the clock
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
experiencing or showing sorrow or unhappiness
From this reading Her face was grave and sad.
perception by means of the eyes
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
joining or attaching by stitches
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading A DOUBLE SURPRISE.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tillie was fast asleep, but her mother, by the light of a small lamp, was engaged in sewing in her little sitting-room.
male cat
From this reading Her hope of seeing Tom again in life was fast growing fainter and fainter.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was ten o’clock in the evening.
Chapter 38 of Tom Thatcher's Fortune by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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.
Chapter 38 holds 106 sentences of Tom Thatcher's Fortune, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 38 of Tom Thatcher's Fortune by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 106 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 38 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 Thatcher's Fortune by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5824 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56896 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56896, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 485 minutes of reading across 1165 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tom Thatcher's Fortune section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Tom Thatcher's Fortune 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 Thatcher's Fortune, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
