Chapter 9 of Williwaw: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Williwaw: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
His two assistants were sitting beside the engines. They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room. One of the oilers crouched in a corner. He had come aboard only the week before. Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
Chapter 9 of Williwaw: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
plural of “assistant” — a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading “His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.”
past form of “crouch” — bend one's back forward from the waist on down
From this reading “One of the oilers crouched in a corner.”
motor that converts thermal energy to mechanical work
From this reading “They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.”
plural of “engine” — motor that converts thermal energy to mechanical work
From this reading “His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.”
gases ejected from an engine as waste products
From this reading “Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.”
A viscous liquid derived from petroleum or plants, stored in large earthen jars.
From this reading “Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.”
plural of “oiler” — a worker who oils engines or machinery
From this reading “One of the oilers crouched in a corner.”
plural of “shirt” — a garment worn on the upper half of the body
From this reading “They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.”
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.
a room (as on a ship) in which the engine is located
In this reading “They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.”
In this reading “He had come aboard only the week before.”
In this reading “His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.”
In this reading “One of the oilers crouched in a corner.”
In this reading “One of the oilers crouched in a corner.”
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 One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
on a ship, train, plane or other vehicle
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
plural of “assistant” — a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
next to; at the side of
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
past form of “crouch” — bend one's back forward from the waist on down
From this reading One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
motor that converts thermal energy to mechanical work
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
plural of “engine” — motor that converts thermal energy to mechanical work
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
gases ejected from an engine as waste products
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
A viscous liquid derived from petroleum or plants, stored in large earthen jars.
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
plural of “oiler” — a worker who oils engines or machinery
From this reading One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One of the oilers crouched in a corner.
and nothing more
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
transport commercially
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
plural of “shirt” — a garment worn on the upper half of the body
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
affected by an impairment of normal physical or mental function
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
any period of seven consecutive days
From this reading He had come aboard only the week before.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Fumes from the oil, as well as the motion of the ship, had made him sick.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading His two assistants were sitting beside the engines.
inflected form of “wear” — be dressed in
From this reading They wore dirty dungarees and thin shirts; it was hot in the engine room.
Chapter 9 of Williwaw: A Novel by Gore Vidal holds 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 418 sentences of Williwaw: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Williwaw: A Novel by Gore Vidal exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Williwaw: A Novel by Gore Vidal on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6242 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66691 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66691, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 520 minutes of reading across 1249 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Williwaw: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of Williwaw: A Novel 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 Williwaw: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
