Chapter XV of Tom Willoughby's Scouts, “The Back Door,” is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XV
Chapter XV of Tom Willoughby's Scouts, “The Back Door,” is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa. The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile. Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position. "Then we will go on. Keep close to me."
Chapter XV of Tom Willoughby's Scouts, “The Back Door,” is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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 low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
From this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
wearing or provided with clothing; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
past form of “dart” — move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
From this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
an opposing military force
From this reading “Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.”
a boy or man
From this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
made known or told about; especially presented in a formal account
From this reading “Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.”
tending to return to an earlier state
From this reading “Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.”
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading “Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.”
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.
In this reading “Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.”
In this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
In this reading “The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.”
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading “"Then we will go on.”
In this reading “Keep close to me."”
In this reading “"Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.”
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 Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading Keep close to me."
wearing or provided with clothing; sometimes used in combination
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
past form of “dart” — move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
place under suspicion or cast doubt upon
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
an opposing military force
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Then we will go on.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading Keep close to me."
a boy or man
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Keep close to me."
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Then we will go on.
the particular portion of space occupied by something
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
made known or told about; especially presented in a formal account
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
tending to return to an earlier state
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
not in physical motion
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Returning in a few minutes, he reported that the enemy had not stirred from their position.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then we will go on.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
male cat
From this reading "Run back and see if the askaris are still there," said Tom to Mwesa.
the upper part of anything
From this reading The lad darted away through the bush that clothed the top of the bank of the defile.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "Then we will go on.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Then we will go on.
Chapter 15 of Tom Willoughby's Scouts by Herbert Strang holds 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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 15 holds 130 sentences of Tom Willoughby's Scouts, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Tom Willoughby's Scouts by Herbert Strang exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 130 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 15 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 Willoughby's Scouts by Herbert Strang on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3266 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39912 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39912, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 272 minutes of reading across 654 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tom Willoughby's Scouts section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Tom Willoughby's Scouts 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 Willoughby's Scouts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
