Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Robin
Robin

Chapter XLII

Cover illustration for Robin
Context Illustration Reading 1/36 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.
The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.
There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.
But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.
"You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Robin

Chapter XLII

Reading 1/36 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.
Line 2
The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.
Line 3
There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.
Line 4
But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.
Line 5
"You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

After preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.”

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Long noun US /long/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Look noun US /look/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Open verb US /ˈoʊ.pən/

To move from a closed position.

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Part noun US /part/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.”

Seemed noun US /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.”

Stood noun US /stood/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.”

Struck noun US /struck/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.”

Themselves pronoun US /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading “It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.”

Those determiner US /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading “There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.”

Without preposition US /wɪˈθaʊt/

not having, not using, or not accompanied by

From this reading “"You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.”

Yet conjunction US /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading “"You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.”

All words in this reading · 87

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

abysses

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

always

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

believed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

bothdeterminerUS /boʊθ/

the two together, not just one

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

clear

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

collapse

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

Coombe

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

deathly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

demanded

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

depths

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

determination

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

doctors

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

dropped

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

drops

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

eyelids

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

eyes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

fear

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

few

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

fierce

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

fight

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

flinching

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

hold

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

hours

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

Jones

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

lift

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

longnounUS /long/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

looknounUS /look/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

looking

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

more

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

most

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

mother

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

needn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

Nurse

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

nurses

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

old

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

openverbUS /ˈoʊ.pən/

To move from a closed position.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

partnounUS /part/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

prolonged

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

said

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

seconds

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

seemednounUS /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

send

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

skill

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading But Nurse Jones always believed and so did Coombe.

space

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

stoodnounUS /stood/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

strain

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

strange

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

strucknounUS /struck/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

terror

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

themselvespronounUS /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

There

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

tortures

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

unceasing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

unswerving

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The depths of the collapse after prolonged tortures of strain and fear was such as demanded a fierce and unceasing fight of skill and unswerving determination on the part of both doctors and nurses.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading There were hours when what seemed to be strange, deathly drops into abysses of space struck terror into most of those who stood by looking on.

withoutprepositionUS /wɪˈθaʊt/

not having, not using, or not accompanied by

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

wore

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was long before the dropped eyelids could lift and hold themselves open for more than a few seconds and long before the eyes wore their old clear look.

yetconjunctionUS /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.

YoupronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading "You needn't send for his mother yet," she said without flinching.