Chapter 20 of Wait and Hope is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Wait and Hope is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months. Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar. "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson. "I hope to win it," said Ben. "So does Sam Archer."
Chapter 20 of Wait and Hope is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/13 · 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.
a person who is expert in the use of a bow and arrow
From this reading “"So does Sam Archer."”
possessive form of “ben” — a mountain or tall hill
From this reading “Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.”
capability to perform or produce
From this reading “Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.”
something given for victory or superiority in a contest or competition or for winning a lottery
From this reading “"Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.”
A specialist in a particular branch of study; a distinguished student.
From this reading “Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.”
a word or expression used for some particular thing
From this reading “Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.”
painstakingly careful and accurate
From this reading “Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.”
United States telephone engineer who assisted Alexander Graham Bell in his experiments (1854-1934)
From this reading “"Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.”
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 “"Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.”
In this reading “Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.”
In this reading “Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.”
In this reading “Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.”
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 Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
prior to a specified or implied time
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
a person who is expert in the use of a bow and arrow
From this reading "So does Sam Archer."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
possessive form of “ben” — a mountain or tall hill
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
capability to perform or produce
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "So does Sam Archer."
with ease (“easy” is sometimes used informally for “easily”)
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
being one more than seven
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
a man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading "I hope to win it," said Ben.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I hope to win it," said Ben.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I hope to win it," said Ben.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
in accordance with nature; relating to or concerning nature
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
something given for victory or superiority in a contest or competition or for winning a lottery
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
a row or line of people (especially soldiers or police) standing abreast of one another
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I hope to win it," said Ben.
a guided missile fired from land or shipboard against an airborne target
From this reading "So does Sam Archer."
A specialist in a particular branch of study; a distinguished student.
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
an educational institution
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "So does Sam Archer."
a word or expression used for some particular thing
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
painstakingly careful and accurate
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Before the Battle Ben's term at school had already extended to eight months.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
United States telephone engineer who assisted Alexander Graham Bell in his experiments (1854-1934)
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
any or all of a kind, it does not matter which
From this reading Our hero was thorough in whatever he did, and, having an excellent natural capacity, easily took high rank as a scholar.
be the winner in a contest or competition; be victorious
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Do you expect to win the prize, Ben?" asked his friend, James Watson.
Chapter 20 of Wait and Hope by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 65 sentences, grouped into 13 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 20 holds 65 sentences of Wait and Hope, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Wait and Hope by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 65 sentences, grouped into 13 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 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 13 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 20 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 Wait and Hope by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4191 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33591 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33591, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 349 minutes of reading across 839 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Wait and Hope section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Wait and Hope 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 Wait and Hope, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
