Chapter 16 of When God Laughs, and Other Stories is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of When God Laughs, and Other Stories is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Do yer duty! Do yer duty!” the men cried. The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered. “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted. From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
Chapter 16 of When God Laughs, and Other Stories is here in full — 222 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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.
treat badly
From this reading “From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.”
possessive form of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading “The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.”
prepare a hot meal
From this reading “The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.”
past form of “falter” — be unsure or weak
From this reading “The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.”
past form of “pour” — cause to run
From this reading “From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.”
in a vehement outcry
From this reading ““If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.”
plural of “threat” — something that is a source of danger
From this reading “From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.”
a heavy rain
From this reading “From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.”
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 From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
treat badly
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
possessive form of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
prepare a hot meal
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading Do yer duty!” the men cried.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “Do yer duty!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading “Do yer duty!
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
opinion or judgment
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
past form of “falter” — be unsure or weak
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
the force of workers available
From this reading Do yer duty!” the men cried.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
above and across; more than
From this reading The cook bent over, but he caught the boy's eyes and faltered.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
past form of “pour” — cause to run
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
in a vehement outcry
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Do yer duty!” the men cried.
plural of “threat” — something that is a source of danger
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
a heavy rain
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading From every side a torrent of abuse and threats poured in upon the cook.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
an old word for “you”, speaking to more than one person
From this reading “If ye don't, I'll kill ye with me own hands,” Behane shouted.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Do yer duty!
Chapter 16 of When God Laughs, and Other Stories by Jack London holds 222 sentences, grouped into 45 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 16 holds 222 sentences of When God Laughs, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of When God Laughs, and Other Stories by Jack London exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 222 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 16 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 When God Laughs, and Other Stories by Jack London on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3846 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2545 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2545, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 320 minutes of reading across 770 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through When God Laughs, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of When God Laughs, and Other Stories 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 When God Laughs, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
