Chapter 2 of Forward, Children! is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Forward, Children! is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Another shell. "Port side ... port!" Landel yelled. The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire. Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
Chapter 2 of Forward, Children! is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
inflected form of “flop” — fall loosely
From this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
material resulting from the process of grinding
From this reading “Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.”
plural of “hammer” — the part of a gunlock that strikes the percussion cap when the trigger is pulled
From this reading “Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.”
past form of “jerk” — pull, or move with a sudden movement
From this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
of or relating to or using air (or a similar gas)
From this reading “Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.”
make a low noise
From this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
plural of “tread” — a step in walking or running
From this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
in an uneven and irregular way
From this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
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 “"Port side ... port!"”
In this reading “The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading Another shell.
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
past form of “drown” — cover completely or make imperceptible
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
inflected form of “flop” — fall loosely
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
material resulting from the process of grinding
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
plural of “hammer” — the part of a gunlock that strikes the percussion cap when the trigger is pulled
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
past form of “jerk” — pull, or move with a sudden movement
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Landel yelled.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
any of several chemical elements that are usually shiny solids that conduct heat or electricity and can be formed into sheets etc.
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
of or relating to or using air (or a similar gas)
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
a place (seaport or airport) where people and merchandise can enter or leave a country
From this reading "Port side ... port!"
uttered with a trill
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
make a low noise
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
plural of “sheet” — any broad thin expanse or surface
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
ammunition consisting of a cylindrical metal casing containing an explosive charge and a projectile; fired from a large gun
From this reading Another shell.
shooting artillery shells
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading "Port side ... port!"
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
plural of “tread” — a step in walking or running
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
in an uneven and irregular way
From this reading The treads caught, slipped, jerked, the M4 flopping from side to side; the rumble of the treads, rolling unevenly, drowned the shellfire.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Their grinding was like the beating of pneumatic hammers on metal sheets.
in a vehement outcry
From this reading Landel yelled.
Chapter 2 of Forward, Children! by Paul Alexander Bartlett holds 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 451 sentences of Forward, Children!, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Forward, Children! by Paul Alexander Bartlett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 Forward, Children! by Paul Alexander Bartlett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4960 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44717 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44717, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 413 minutes of reading across 992 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Forward, Children! section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Forward, 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 Forward, Children!, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
