Chapter 2 of Highland Ballad is here in full — 421 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 Highland Ballad is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"But it does matter," she insisted, "to you. And to me." Their eyes met. For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well. But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
Chapter 2 of Highland Ballad is here in full — 421 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.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading “But the aged eyes knew no more tears.”
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading “For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.”
past form of “insist” — be emphatic or resolute and refuse to budge
From this reading “"But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.”
the mother of Jesus; Christians refer to her as the Virgin Mary; she is especially honored by Roman Catholics
From this reading “For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.”
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading “"But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.”
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading “Their eyes met.”
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading “But the aged eyes knew no more tears.”
shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain
From this reading “For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.”
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 For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
(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 For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And to me."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Their eyes met.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
past form of “insist” — be emphatic or resolute and refuse to budge
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
the mother of Jesus; Christians refer to her as the Virgin Mary; she is especially honored by Roman Catholics
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading And to me."
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Their eyes met.
a particular point in time
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
not any; not one
From this reading But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading But the aged eyes knew no more tears.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Their eyes met.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading For a moment Mary thought the woman would weep, and embrace her, and all would be well.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "But it does matter," she insisted, "to you.
Chapter 2 of Highland Ballad by Christopher Leadem holds 421 sentences, grouped into 85 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 421 sentences of Highland Ballad, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Highland Ballad by Christopher Leadem exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 421 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 Highland Ballad by Christopher Leadem on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4703 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6591 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6591, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 391 minutes of reading across 941 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Highland Ballad section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Highland Ballad 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 Highland Ballad, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
