Chapter 20 of Whispering Smith is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Whispering Smith is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand. "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured. "And I thought him ferocious! But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?" Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
Chapter 20 of Whispering Smith is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
marked by extreme and violent energy
From this reading “"And I thought him ferocious!”
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading “"Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.”
without mercy or pity
From this reading “But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"”
emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
From this reading “Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.”
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading “A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.”
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading “A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.”
characterized by or indicative of distress or affliction or danger or need
From this reading “Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.”
a light noise, like the noise of silk clothing or leaves blowing in the wind
From this reading “A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.”
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 A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
marked by extreme and violent energy
From this reading "And I thought him ferocious!
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "And I thought him ferocious!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
the sound of laughing
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
without mercy or pity
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
express in words
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But is he as pitiless as they say, Marion?"
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Is this the terrible man I have heard about?" she murmured.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "And I thought him ferocious!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
characterized by or indicative of distress or affliction or danger or need
From this reading Marion laughed--a troubled little laugh of surprise and sadness.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
at the time that
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
a light noise, like the noise of silk clothing or leaves blowing in the wind
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A TALK WITH WHISPERING SMITH When Whispering Smith had followed McCloud from the tent, Dicksie turned to Marion and caught her hand.
Chapter 20 of Whispering Smith by Frank H. (Frank Hamilton) Spearman holds 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 148 sentences of Whispering Smith, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Whispering Smith by Frank H. (Frank Hamilton) Spearman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 Whispering Smith by Frank H. (Frank Hamilton) Spearman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6435 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29572 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29572, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 536 minutes of reading across 1287 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Whispering Smith section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Whispering Smith 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 Whispering Smith, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
