Chapter 15 of Trafalgar: A Tale is here in full — 249 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Trafalgar: A Tale is here in full — 249 sentences across 50 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck. "However, when the captain commands the men must obey. _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship. They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't. We shall see what we shall see."
Chapter 15 of Trafalgar: A Tale 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.
an ancient port city in southwestern Spain
From this reading “They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.”
plural of “command” — an authoritative direction or instruction to do something
From this reading “"However, when the captain commands the men must obey.”
deserving a curse; sometimes used as an intensifier
From this reading “_Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.”
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading “"Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.”
set down according to a plan
From this reading “"Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.”
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading “They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.”
be obedient to
From this reading “"However, when the captain commands the men must obey.”
having or bringing misfortune
From this reading “_Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.”
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 “"Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
an ancient port city in southwestern Spain
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
plural of “command” — an authoritative direction or instruction to do something
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
deserving a curse; sometimes used as an intensifier
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
any of various platforms built into a vessel
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
start firing a weapon
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
set down according to a plan
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
the force of workers available
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
be obedient to
From this reading "However, when the captain commands the men must obey.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
express in words
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading We shall see what we shall see."
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading We shall see what we shall see."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
transport commercially
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
having or bringing misfortune
From this reading _Rayo_ is an unlucky name for this cursed ship.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We shall see what we shall see."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading We shall see what we shall see."
at the time that
From this reading "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," said Marcial, when they laid him down on deck.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They say she will be in Cadiz by midnight, and I say she won't.
Chapter 15 of Trafalgar: A Tale by Benito Pérez Galdós 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 15 holds 249 sentences of Trafalgar: A Tale, unabridged, divided into 50 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Trafalgar: A Tale by Benito Pérez Galdós 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 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 Trafalgar: A Tale by Benito Pérez Galdós on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2073 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #47980 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #47980, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 172 minutes of reading across 415 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Trafalgar: A Tale section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Trafalgar: A Tale 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 Trafalgar: A Tale, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
