Chapter 2 of Five Minute Stories is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Five Minute Stories is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
We played with our toys the _longest_ while! We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas! They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh! _how_ the pieces did fly! Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
Chapter 2 of Five Minute Stories is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
relating to or characteristic of alps
From this reading “Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.”
plural of “block” — a solid piece of something (usually having flat rectangular sides)
From this reading “We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!”
for the most time
the most extreme possible amount or value
From this reading “Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.”
sharp piercing cry
From this reading “Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.”
inflected form of “slide” — move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner
From this reading “Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.”
plural of “toy” — an artifact designed to be played with
From this reading “We played with our toys the _longest_ while!”
the gymnastic moves of an acrobat
From this reading “We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!”
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.
In this reading “We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!”
In this reading “We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!”
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 We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh!
used to show sadness, pity, or regret
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
relating to or characteristic of alps
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
plural of “block” — a solid piece of something (usually having flat rectangular sides)
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
(used of soaps or cleaning agents) having a substance (an abrasive or filler) added to increase effectiveness
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading _how_ the pieces did fly!
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh!
travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading _how_ the pieces did fly!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _how_ the pieces did fly!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
for the most time
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh!
a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh!
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
the most extreme possible amount or value
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
plural of “piece” — a separate part of a whole
From this reading _how_ the pieces did fly!
(of games) engaged in
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
precisely, exactly
From this reading They fell right against the looking-glass,— Oh!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
utter in a loud voice; talk in a loud voice (usually denoting characteristic manner of speaking)
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
sharp piercing cry
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
inflected form of “slide” — move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
plural of “toy” — an artifact designed to be played with
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
the gymnastic moves of an acrobat
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Then we played the stairs were an Alpine peak, And down we slid with shout and with shriek,— Roderick, I and James.
at the time that
From this reading We built up the blocks for nearly a mile,— Roderick, James and I. But when they came tumbling down, alas!
during the time that
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
in the company of; together with
From this reading We played with our toys the _longest_ while!
Chapter 2 of Five Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards holds 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 399 sentences of Five Minute Stories, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Five Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 Five Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2752 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #49748 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #49748, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 229 minutes of reading across 551 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Five Minute Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of Five Minute 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 Five Minute Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
