Chapter 4 of Under the Southern Cross is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Under the Southern Cross is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole. I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window. "What do you want?" I demand, and in the same breath, "Go away! Mrs. Steele!
Chapter 4 of Under the Southern Cross is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/43 · 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.
the act of someone who fishes as a diversion
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
a white nutritious liquid secreted by mammals and used as food by human beings
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
plural of “pearl” — a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
look furtively
From this reading “I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.”
a place (seaport or airport) where people and merchandise can enter or leave a country
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
past form of “rouse” — become active
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
a person, without saying who
From this reading “I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.”
English writer (1672-1729)
From this reading “Mrs. Steele!”
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 I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
in a state of sleep
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading I demand, and in the same breath, "Go away!
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading I demand, and in the same breath, "Go away!
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
large hard-shelled oval nut with a fibrous husk containing thick white meat surrounding a central cavity filled (when fresh) with fluid or milk
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
the first light of day
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
an urgent or peremptory request
From this reading I demand, and in the same breath, "Go away!
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "What do you want?"
take in liquids
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
opinion or judgment
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
having dropped by the force of gravity
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
something many people believe that is false
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
the act of someone who fishes as a diversion
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
an opening into or through something
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
and nothing more
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
a white nutritious liquid secreted by mammals and used as food by human beings
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. Steele!
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
plural of “pearl” — a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
look furtively
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
a place (seaport or airport) where people and merchandise can enter or leave a country
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
past form of “rouse” — become active
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
Identical; not different.
From this reading I demand, and in the same breath, "Go away!
a person, without saying who
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
English writer (1672-1729)
From this reading Mrs. Steele!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "What do you want?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What do you want?"
at the time that
From this reading I DRINK COCOANUT MILK AND GO FISHING FOR PEARLS I fancy I have just fallen asleep when I am roused by hearing someone speaking at the port hole.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading I open my eyes to find it is the peep o' day, and out of the dull, grey dawn a Mexican's face looks in at my window.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "What do you want?"
Chapter 4 of Under the Southern Cross by Elizabeth Robins holds 216 sentences, grouped into 44 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 4 holds 216 sentences of Under the Southern Cross, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Under the Southern Cross by Elizabeth Robins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 216 sentences, grouped into 44 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 44 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 44 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 4 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 Under the Southern Cross by Elizabeth Robins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1541 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28008 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28008, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 128 minutes of reading across 309 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Under the Southern Cross section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of Under the Southern Cross 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 Under the Southern Cross, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
