Chapter 2 of Artists' Wives is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Artists' Wives is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes. It was her own husband who had had her hissed! A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION. What can be the matter with him? What can he complain of?
Chapter 2 of Artists' Wives is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
without seeing or looking
From this reading “She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.”
express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading “What can he complain of?”
get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading “She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.”
past form of “hiss” — make a sharp hissing sound, as if to show disapproval
From this reading “It was her own husband who had had her hissed!”
putting the wrong interpretation on
From this reading “A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.”
plural of “scene” — the place where some action occurs
From this reading “She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.”
an interpretation of a matter from a particular viewpoint
From this reading “A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.”
possessive form of “wife” — a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.”
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 MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
without seeing or looking
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading What can he complain of?
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
overfilled or compacted or concentrated
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading What can he complain of?
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
past form of “hiss” — make a sharp hissing sound, as if to show disapproval
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
moving to the inside of something
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
putting the wrong interpretation on
From this reading A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What can he complain of?
and nothing more
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
plural of “scene” — the place where some action occurs
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading She could only burst into tears and blindly disappear through the crowded side scenes.
an interpretation of a matter from a particular viewpoint
From this reading A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
which person or people
From this reading It was her own husband who had had her hissed!
possessive form of “wife” — a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading A MISUNDERSTANDING -- THE WIFE'S VERSION.
in the company of; together with
From this reading What can be the matter with him?
Chapter 2 of Artists' Wives by Alphonse Daudet holds 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 444 sentences of Artists' Wives, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Artists' Wives by Alphonse Daudet exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 Artists' Wives by Alphonse Daudet on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1352 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #22522 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #22522, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 112 minutes of reading across 271 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Artists' Wives section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of Artists' Wives 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 Artists' Wives, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
