Chapter 9 of Voice from the Cave is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Voice from the Cave is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth. Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?" "Why not?" Jerry demanded, his eyes amused. "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
Chapter 9 of Voice from the Cave is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
pleasantly occupied
From this reading “Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.”
terminate
From this reading “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading “Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.”
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading “Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"”
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
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 “"Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.”
In this reading “"Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."”
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 "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
pleasantly occupied
From this reading Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
terminate
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
opinion or judgment
From this reading Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Jerry demanded, his eyes amused.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
offensive term for a person of German descent
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Why not?"
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
precisely, exactly
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
express in words
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
express in words
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
a fact that has been verified
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why not?"
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Poor Dad," Penny murmured, "I'm afraid it will break him up to learn the truth.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Do you say I should tell him right away, Jerry?"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Your father may have a few things to break to you too, Penny."
Chapter 9 of Voice from the Cave by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 9 holds 404 sentences of Voice from the Cave, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Voice from the Cave by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 9 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 Voice from the Cave by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3996 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34832 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34832, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 333 minutes of reading across 800 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Voice from the Cave section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of Voice from the Cave 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 Voice from the Cave, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
