Chapter 2 of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away. He heard the clock strike ten. He waited and watched. The clock struck eleven. He was beginning to feel tired.
Chapter 2 of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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 timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading “He heard the clock strike ten.”
lacking in light; not bright or harsh
From this reading “The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.”
being one more than ten
From this reading “The clock struck eleven.”
the natural satellite of the Earth
From this reading “The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.”
deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon
From this reading “He heard the clock strike ten.”
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading “He was beginning to feel tired.”
a structure taller than its diameter; can stand alone or be attached to a larger building
From this reading “The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.”
past form of “wait” — stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading “He waited and watched.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading He was beginning to feel tired.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
a timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading He heard the clock strike ten.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
lacking in light; not bright or harsh
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
being one more than ten
From this reading The clock struck eleven.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind
From this reading He was beginning to feel tired.
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading He heard the clock strike ten.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
the natural satellite of the Earth
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon
From this reading He heard the clock strike ten.
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading The clock struck eleven.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading He heard the clock strike ten.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading He was beginning to feel tired.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He was beginning to feel tired.
a structure taller than its diameter; can stand alone or be attached to a larger building
From this reading The moon rose, and by its light he could see the dim form of the church tower, far away.
past form of “wait” — stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading He waited and watched.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was beginning to feel tired.
past form of “watch” — look attentively
From this reading He waited and watched.
Chapter 2 of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories by James Baldwin holds 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 424 sentences of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories by James Baldwin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories by James Baldwin on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2538 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6168 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6168, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 211 minutes of reading across 508 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories 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 Fifty Famous People: A Book of Short Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
