Chapter 12 of What Might Have Been Expected 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 XII
Chapter 12 of What Might Have Been Expected is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TONY ON THE WAR-PATH. "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch. "I!" exclaimed Kate. "Rob, you mean." "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
Chapter 12 of What Might Have Been Expected 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 member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading “"That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"”
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading “"I!" exclaimed Kate.”
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading “"She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “"Rob, you mean."”
take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading “"Rob, you mean."”
a merchant who owns or manages a shop
From this reading “"That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"”
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading “"She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.”
a community of people smaller than a town
From this reading “"She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.”
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 "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
(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 "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "I!" exclaimed Kate.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I!" exclaimed Kate.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I!" exclaimed Kate.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Rob, you mean."
a form of address for a man
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading TONY ON THE WAR-PATH.
take something away by force or without the consent of the owner
From this reading "Rob, you mean."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
a merchant who owns or manages a shop
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
carry out
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TONY ON THE WAR-PATH.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TONY ON THE WAR-PATH.
a community of people smaller than a town
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TONY ON THE WAR-PATH.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's a good dog," said Mr. Darby, the storekeeper; "what'll you take for him?"
at the time that
From this reading "She did it all," said Harry, when they had told the tale to half the village, on the store-porch.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Rob, you mean."
Chapter 12 of What Might Have Been Expected by Frank R. Stockton 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 12 holds 65 sentences of What Might Have Been Expected, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of What Might Have Been Expected by Frank R. Stockton 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 12 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 What Might Have Been Expected by Frank R. Stockton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2888 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18654 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18654, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 240 minutes of reading across 578 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through What Might Have Been Expected section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of What Might Have Been Expected 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 What Might Have Been Expected, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
