Chapter 2 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A REJECTED MANUSCRIPT. "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid. And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise: "For Mr. Roseleaf! This is the first letter he has had since he came."
Chapter 2 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/48 · 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 landlord who is a woman
From this reading “"A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.”
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading “"A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.”
A book, document, or piece of music written by hand rather than typed or printed.
From this reading “A REJECTED MANUSCRIPT.”
made ready or fit or suitable beforehand
From this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
rebuffed (by a lover) without warning
From this reading “A REJECTED MANUSCRIPT.”
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
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.
In this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
In this reading “And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:”
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 REJECTED MANUSCRIPT.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
a maid who is employed to clean and care for bedrooms (now primarily in hotels)
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
a young female
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
a landlord who is a woman
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
A book, document, or piece of music written by hand rather than typed or printed.
From this reading A REJECTED MANUSCRIPT.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
made ready or fit or suitable beforehand
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
rebuffed (by a lover) without warning
From this reading A REJECTED MANUSCRIPT.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
express in words
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This is the first letter he has had since he came."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "A letter for Mr. Roseleaf," he heard his landlady say to the chambermaid.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And he was quite prepared to hear the girl reply, in a tone of surprise:
Chapter 2 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter holds 240 sentences, grouped into 48 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 2 holds 240 sentences of A Black Adonis, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 240 sentences, grouped into 48 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 48 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 48 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 2 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 A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5408 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26599 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26599, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 450 minutes of reading across 1082 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Black Adonis section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of A Black Adonis 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 A Black Adonis, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
