Chapter 2 of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) is here in full — 310 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) is here in full — 310 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus. There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection. So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter. FABLE XIX. LION AND CUB.
Chapter 2 of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) is here in full — 310 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/62 · 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.
plural of “bid” — an authoritative direction or instruction to do something
From this reading “So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.”
past form of “borrow” — get temporarily
From this reading “So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.”
an awkward and inexperienced youth
From this reading “LION AND CUB.”
a deliberately false or improbable account
From this reading “FABLE XIX.”
comparative of “faint” — deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading “So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.”
the act of rejecting something
From this reading “There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.”
the second nearest planet to the sun
From this reading “So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.”
past form of “vote” — express one's preference for a candidate or for a measure or resolution; cast a vote
From this reading “There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.”
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 So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
plural of “bid” — an authoritative direction or instruction to do something
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
past form of “borrow” — get temporarily
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
an awkward and inexperienced youth
From this reading LION AND CUB.
plural of “end” — either extremity of something that has length
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
a deliberately false or improbable account
From this reading FABLE XIX.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
comparative of “faint” — deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
a state of high honor
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
not disposed to cheat or defraud; not deceptive or fraudulent
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
large gregarious predatory feline of Africa and India having a tawny coat with a shaggy mane in the male
From this reading LION AND CUB.
a person who loves someone or is loved by someone
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
concerned with principles of right and wrong or conforming to standards of behavior and character based on those principles
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
an artist who paints
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
the state of being without a flaw or defect
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold)
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
located or moved above the surround or above the normal position
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
the act of rejecting something
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
the second nearest planet to the sun
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
past form of “vote” — express one's preference for a candidate or for a measure or resolution; cast a vote
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was no fear of its rejection-- Her lover voted it perfection.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading So on he went to fame and glory, And raised his price--which ends the story;-- But not the moral,--which, though fainter, Bids one to scorn an honest painter.
in the company of; together with
From this reading So with a lady--he, between us, Borrowed the face and form of Venus.
the cardinal number that is the sum of eighteen and one
From this reading FABLE XIX.
Chapter 2 of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) by John Benson Rose holds 310 sentences, grouped into 62 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 310 sentences of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered), unabridged, divided into 62 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) by John Benson Rose exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 310 sentences, grouped into 62 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 62 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 62 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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Yes. All 1534 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26199 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26199, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 127 minutes of reading across 307 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) 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 Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered), each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
