Chapter 2 of Eli's Children is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Eli's Children is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling. "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent. I did not want to hurt your feelings. Come, shake hands." "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
Chapter 2 of Eli's Children is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
changed in form or character without becoming something else
From this reading “"Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.”
the point or degree to which something extends
From this reading “"I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.”
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading “"Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.”
plural of “improvement” — a change for the better; progress in development
From this reading “"I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.”
a person authorized to conduct religious worship
From this reading “"That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.”
appearing as such but not necessarily so
From this reading “"Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.”
move or cause to move back and forth
From this reading “Come, shake hands."”
(used as an intensifier) extremely well
From this reading “"Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.”
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.
take someone's hands and shake them as a gesture of greeting or congratulation
In this reading “Come, shake hands."”
stop using
In this reading “"That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “"Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.”
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.
(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 "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
changed in form or character without becoming something else
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
on or to one side
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
relevant relation or interconnection
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come, shake hands."
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading I did not want to hurt your feelings.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
the point or degree to which something extends
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
emotional or moral sensitivity (especially in relation to personal principles or dignity)
From this reading I did not want to hurt your feelings.
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Come, shake hands."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
be the source of pain
From this reading I did not want to hurt your feelings.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
plural of “improvement” — a change for the better; progress in development
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
engage in
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
an old word for “no”
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
a person authorized to conduct religious worship
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
appearing as such but not necessarily so
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
move or cause to move back and forth
From this reading Come, shake hands."
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "I do want to make improvements here, but not to that extent.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "That's all put aside, Mr Warmoth," said the Rector, smiling.
(used as an intensifier) extremely well
From this reading "Nay; I'll not," cried the old man, fiercely, his bearing seeming to have wonderfully altered now.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I did not want to hurt your feelings.
Chapter 2 of Eli's Children by George Manville Fenn holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 404 sentences of Eli's Children, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Eli's Children by George Manville Fenn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Eli's Children by George Manville Fenn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9004 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36642 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36642, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1801 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Eli's Children section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Eli's Children 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 Eli's Children, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
