Chapter 2 of Ben Hardy's flying machine is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Ben Hardy's flying machine is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben. “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton. The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face. He acted like a man who had got off cheaply. It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
Chapter 2 of Ben Hardy's flying machine is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
possessive form of “ben” — a mountain or tall hill
plural of “cent” — a fractional monetary unit of several countries
From this reading “It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.”
in a stingy manner
From this reading “He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.”
an asset of special worth or utility
From this reading “It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.”
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading ““Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.”
a business engaged in manufacturing some product
From this reading “The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.”
witty language used to convey insults or scorn
From this reading “It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.”
being five more than twenty
From this reading “It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.”
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 “It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.”
leave a vehicle, aircraft, etc.
In this reading “He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.”
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 The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
past form of “act” — perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
possessive form of “ben” — a mountain or tall hill
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
plural of “cent” — a fractional monetary unit of several countries
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
in a stingy manner
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
recognizable; marked
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
an asset of special worth or utility
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
and nothing more
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
a business engaged in manufacturing some product
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
make reference to
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
a form of address for a man
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
past form of “respond” — show a response or a reaction to something
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
witty language used to convey insults or scorn
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t mention it,” responded Jasper Saxton.
express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
being five more than twenty
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was in Ben’s mind to ask Mr. Saxton if he “was to keep all of the twenty-five cents,” but sarcasm was not Ben’s forte.
which person or people
From this reading He acted like a man who had got off cheaply.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The manufacturer turned from Ben with a decided expression of relief on his face.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading JUST IN TIME “Thank you,” said Ben.
Chapter 2 of Ben Hardy's flying machine by Frank V. Webster holds 108 sentences, grouped into 22 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 108 sentences of Ben Hardy's flying machine, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Ben Hardy's flying machine by Frank V. Webster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 108 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 Ben Hardy's flying machine by Frank V. Webster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3258 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #69511 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #69511, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 271 minutes of reading across 652 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ben Hardy's flying machine section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Ben Hardy's flying machine 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 Ben Hardy's flying machine, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
