Chapter 2 of Black Canaan is here in full — 500 sentences across 100 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Black Canaan is here in full — 500 sentences across 100 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast. It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger. At that range I could not miss. But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins. And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
Chapter 2 of Black Canaan is here in full — 500 sentences across 100 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/100 · 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.
Causing difficulty in breathing.
From this reading “With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.”
past form of “cock” — tilt or slant to one side
From this reading “It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.”
inflected form of “freeze” — stop moving or become immobilized
From this reading “But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.”
past form of “level” — aim at
From this reading “With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.”
the open circular discharging end of a gun
From this reading “But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.”
put in motion or move to act
From this reading “It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.”
plural of “vein” — a blood vessel that carries blood from the capillaries toward the heart
From this reading “But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.”
inflected form of “whip” — beat severely with a whip or rod
From this reading “With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.”
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.
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 With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
The red fluid that circulates in the heart and blood vessels.
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
the front of the trunk from the neck to the abdomen
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
Causing difficulty in breathing.
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
past form of “cock” — tilt or slant to one side
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading At that range I could not miss.
utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
start firing a weapon
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
inflected form of “freeze” — stop moving or become immobilized
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
an iconic mental representation
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
past form of “level” — aim at
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading At that range I could not miss.
the open circular discharging end of a gun
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading At that range I could not miss.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
a firearm that is held and fired with one hand
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
-ing form of “point” — indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
an area in which something acts or operates or has power or control: "the range of a supersonic jet"
From this reading At that range I could not miss.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading At that range I could not miss.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
in or at that place or location
From this reading And I sat there like an image pointing a pistol I could not fire!
put in motion or move to act
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
plural of “vein” — a blood vessel that carries blood from the capillaries toward the heart
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was cocked and my finger was on the trigger.
inflected form of “whip” — beat severely with a whip or rod
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
marked by extreme lack of restraint or control
From this reading But she looked full into the black muzzle and laughed--laughed--laughed, in wild peals that froze the blood in my veins.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With a choking cry I whipped out a pistol and leveled it full at her breast.
Chapter 2 of Black Canaan by Robert E. (Robert Ervin) Howard holds 500 sentences, grouped into 100 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 500 sentences of Black Canaan, unabridged, divided into 100 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Black Canaan by Robert E. (Robert Ervin) Howard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 500 sentences, grouped into 100 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 100 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 100 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 Black Canaan by Robert E. (Robert Ervin) Howard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 999 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #71168 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #71168, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 83 minutes of reading across 200 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Black Canaan section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of Black Canaan 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 Black Canaan, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
