Chapter 2 of A House of Gentlefolk is here in full — 23 sentences across 5 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of A House of Gentlefolk is here in full — 23 sentences across 5 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice. “How do you like my new purchase?” Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window. “How do you do, Woldemar! Ah, what a splendid horse!
Chapter 2 of A House of Gentlefolk is here in full — 23 sentences across 5 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/4 · 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.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading ““How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.”
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading “Ah, what a splendid horse!”
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading ““How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.”
the acquisition of something for payment
From this reading ““How do you like my new purchase?””
the sound of a bell ringing
From this reading ““How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.”
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading “Ah, what a splendid horse!”
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading ““How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.”
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading “Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window.”
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 “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ah, what a splendid horse!
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading Ah, what a splendid horse!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “How do you like my new purchase?”
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “How do you like my new purchase?”
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading “How do you like my new purchase?”
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
the acquisition of something for payment
From this reading “How do you like my new purchase?”
the sound of a bell ringing
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading Ah, what a splendid horse!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Ah, what a splendid horse!
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading Marya Dmitrievna went up to the window.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you do, Woldemar!
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “How do you do, Marya Dmitrievna?” cried the young man in a pleasant, ringing voice.
Chapter 2 of A House of Gentlefolk by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev holds 23 sentences, grouped into 5 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 23 sentences of A House of Gentlefolk, unabridged, divided into 5 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of A House of Gentlefolk by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 23 sentences, grouped into 5 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 5 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 5 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 House of Gentlefolk by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3134 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5721 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5721, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 261 minutes of reading across 627 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A House of Gentlefolk section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of A House of Gentlefolk 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 House of Gentlefolk, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
