Chapter 2 of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
What stupid letters I write! Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life. Yet you never seem alarmed about it. I think it is so _brave_ of you. That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
Chapter 2 of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
experiencing a sudden sense of danger
From this reading “Yet you never seem alarmed about it.”
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading “That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.”
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading “That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.”
cause fear in
From this reading “Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.”
third-person singular of “remind” — put in the mind of someone
From this reading “That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.”
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading “Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.”
lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity
From this reading “What stupid letters I write!”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Yet you never seem alarmed about it.
experiencing a sudden sense of danger
From this reading Yet you never seem alarmed about it.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading I think it is so _brave_ of you.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
cause fear in
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading What stupid letters I write!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
the literary culture
From this reading What stupid letters I write!
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Yet you never seem alarmed about it.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I think it is so _brave_ of you.
a human being
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
third-person singular of “remind” — put in the mind of someone
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
express in words
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Yet you never seem alarmed about it.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading I think it is so _brave_ of you.
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity
From this reading What stupid letters I write!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading That reminds me that I never finished what I wanted to say at the beginning of this letter.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What stupid letters I write!
at the time that
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
produce a literary work
From this reading What stupid letters I write!
but in spite of that
From this reading Yet you never seem alarmed about it.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Doesn’t it frighten you when you read them and think that is the person with whom I have to spend my life.
Chapter 2 of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus by Arthur Conan Doyle holds 423 sentences, grouped into 85 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 423 sentences of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus by Arthur Conan Doyle exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 423 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 Duet, with an Occasional Chorus by Arthur Conan Doyle on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5435 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5260 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5260, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 452 minutes of reading across 1087 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of A Duet, with an Occasional Chorus 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 Duet, with an Occasional Chorus, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
