Chapter 2 of Browning's Shorter Poems is here in full — 342 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Browning's Shorter Poems is here in full — 342 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook? Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald? You threaten us, fellow? Do your worst! Blow your pipe there till you burst!"
Chapter 2 of Browning's Shorter Poems is here in full — 342 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/68 · 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.
a natural stream of water smaller than a river (and often a tributary of a river)
From this reading “XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?”
not in action or at work
From this reading “Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?”
past form of “insult” — treat, mention, or speak to rudely
From this reading “Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?”
moving slowly and gently
From this reading “Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?”
the head of a city government
From this reading “XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?”
having sections or patches colored differently and usually brightly
From this reading “Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?”
a ribald person; someone who uses vulgar and offensive language
From this reading “Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?”
pose a threat to; present a danger to
From this reading “You threaten us, fellow?”
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 XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
exhale hard
From this reading Blow your pipe there till you burst!"
a natural stream of water smaller than a river (and often a tributary of a river)
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure
From this reading Blow your pipe there till you burst!"
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
prepare a hot meal
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Do your worst!
a boy or man
From this reading You threaten us, fellow?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
not in action or at work
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
past form of “insult” — treat, mention, or speak to rudely
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
moving slowly and gently
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
the head of a city government
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
having sections or patches colored differently and usually brightly
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
a tube with a small bowl at one end; used for smoking tobacco
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
a ribald person; someone who uses vulgar and offensive language
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
in or at that place or location
From this reading Blow your pipe there till you burst!"
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
pose a threat to; present a danger to
From this reading You threaten us, fellow?
up to a particular time
From this reading Blow your pipe there till you burst!"
subjected to a physical (or chemical) treatment or action or agent
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading You threaten us, fellow?
something that covers or cloaks like a garment
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Insulted by a lazy ribald With idle pipe and vesture piebald?
(comparative of “bad”) inferior to another in quality or condition or desirability
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
the least favorable outcome
From this reading Do your worst!
the cardinal number that is the sum of ten and one
From this reading XI "How?" cried the Mayor, "d'ye think I brook Being worse treated than a cook?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You threaten us, fellow?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Do your worst!
Chapter 2 of Browning's Shorter Poems by Robert Browning holds 342 sentences, grouped into 69 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 342 sentences of Browning's Shorter Poems, unabridged, divided into 69 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Browning's Shorter Poems by Robert Browning exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 342 sentences, grouped into 69 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 69 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 69 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.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Browning's Shorter Poems, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
