Chapter 7 of Tommy Smith's Animals is here in full — 249 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Tommy Smith's Animals is here in full — 249 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET! Pee-wee-eet!” That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith. Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head. “Pee-wee-eet!
Chapter 7 of Tommy Smith's Animals is here in full — 249 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/49 · 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.
be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading “THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!”
plural of “circle” — ellipse in which the two axes are of equal length; a plane curve generated by one point moving at a constant distance from a fixed point
From this reading “That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.”
oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food
From this reading “THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!”
adult female chicken
From this reading “THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!”
possessive form of “hen” — adult female chicken
plural of “hen” — adult female chicken
From this reading “THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!”
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading “Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.”
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading “That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.”
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.
move around in a circular motion
In this reading “That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.”
In this reading “That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.”
In this reading “Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.”
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 THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
plural of “circle” — ellipse in which the two axes are of equal length; a plane curve generated by one point moving at a constant distance from a fixed point
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
take in solid food
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
adult female chicken
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
possessive form of “hen” — adult female chicken
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
plural of “hen” — adult female chicken
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
large crested Old World plover having wattles and spurs
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading That is what a bird kept saying as he flew in circles round Tommy Smith.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Sometimes he flew quite a long way off, and sometimes he came so near him that it seemed as if he would settle on his head.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading THE PEEWIT “_To eat peewit’s eggs to a peewit seems wrong, So a hen MAY think hen’s eggs to hens should belong._” “PEE-WEE-EET!
Chapter 7 of Tommy Smith's Animals by Edmund Selous holds 249 sentences, grouped into 50 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 7 holds 249 sentences of Tommy Smith's Animals, unabridged, divided into 50 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Tommy Smith's Animals by Edmund Selous exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 249 sentences, grouped into 50 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 50 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 50 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 7 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 Tommy Smith's Animals by Edmund Selous on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2418 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51933 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51933, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 201 minutes of reading across 484 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tommy Smith's Animals section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Tommy Smith's Animals 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 Tommy Smith's Animals, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
