Chapter 1 of Touch the sky is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Touch the sky is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET! TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢! Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought. Cheap enough at twice the fare. Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
Chapter 1 of Touch the sky is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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.
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading “Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.”
an agenda of things to do
From this reading “Cheap enough at twice the fare.”
past form of “giggle” — laugh nervously
From this reading “Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.”
a state of high honor
From this reading “Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.”
United States composer of works noted for their use of the American vernacular (1893-1969)
From this reading “Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.”
any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading “The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!”
two times
From this reading “TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!”
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!”
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.
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Cheap enough at twice the fare.
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
an agenda of things to do
From this reading Cheap enough at twice the fare.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!
past form of “giggle” — laugh nervously
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
a state of high honor
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
United States composer of works noted for their use of the American vernacular (1893-1969)
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
past form of “pull” — cause to move by pulling
From this reading Glory giggled and pulled at his arm.
sit and travel on the back of animal, usually while controlling its motions
From this reading The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!
any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!
a perceptible indication of something not immediately apparent (as a visible clue that something has happened)
From this reading The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The sign said: RIDE THE ROCKET!
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
two times
From this reading TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading TWICE AROUND THE UNIVERSE FOR 25¢!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Which was cheap enough, Pete Moore thought.
Chapter 1 of Touch the sky by Alfred Coppel holds 222 sentences, grouped into 45 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 1 holds 222 sentences of Touch the sky, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Touch the sky by Alfred Coppel exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 222 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 1 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 Touch the sky by Alfred Coppel on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Touch the sky section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Touch the sky 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 Touch the sky, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
