Chapter 34 of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIV
Chapter 34 of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO. As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch. It lacks a quarter of two o’clock. “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters. Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
Chapter 34 of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery is here in full — 159 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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 enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
to say again or imitate
From this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
plural of “glance” — a quick look
From this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
plural of “lack” — the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable
From this reading “It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.”
plural of “mutter” — a low continuous indistinct sound; often accompanied by movement of the lips without the production of articulate speech
From this reading ““The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.”
the range of colour characteristic of a particular artist or painting or school of art
From this reading “Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.”
plural of “throw” — the act of throwing (propelling something with a rapid movement of the arm and wrist)
From this reading “Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.”
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 ““The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.”
become less in amount or intensity
In this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
In this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
In this reading ““The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.”
forced to turn and face attackers
In this reading “AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.”
In this reading “As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.”
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 It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
an indentation of a shoreline larger than a cove but smaller than a gulf
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
to say again or imitate
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
plural of “footstep” — the sound of a step of someone walking
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
plural of “glance” — a quick look
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
depressingly dark
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
plural of “lack” — the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable
From this reading It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
plural of “mutter” — a low continuous indistinct sound; often accompanied by movement of the lips without the production of articulate speech
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
according to the clock
From this reading It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
the range of colour characteristic of a particular artist or painting or school of art
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
one of four equal parts
From this reading It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
plant fiber used e.g. for making baskets and hats or as fodder
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AT BAY IN THE CHURCH OF SAN PEDRO.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
plural of “throw” — the act of throwing (propelling something with a rapid movement of the arm and wrist)
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading It lacks a quarter of two o’clock.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading Then he extinguishes the light and throws himself down upon the pallet of straw.
look attentively
From this reading As the echo of Father Hilario’s footsteps dies away adown the gloomy corridor Ashley glances at his watch.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading “The trick must be done within two hours, or all is lost,” he mutters.
Chapter 34 of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery by Bert Leston Taylor holds 159 sentences, grouped into 32 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 34 holds 159 sentences of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 34 of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery by Bert Leston Taylor exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 159 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 34 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 Three Flags: A Story of Mystery by Bert Leston Taylor on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7417 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65345 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65345, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1484 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Under Three Flags: A Story of Mystery 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 Three Flags: A Story of Mystery, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
