Chapter 2 of "I Say No" is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of "I Say No" is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle. “Don’t put it out.” Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep. Emily laid down the extinguisher. “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
Chapter 2 of "I Say No" is here in full — 145 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
in a state of sleep
From this reading “Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.”
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.”
a manually operated device for extinguishing small fires
From this reading “Emily laid down the extinguisher.”
to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.”
having a point
From this reading “The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.”
to give an account or representation of in words
From this reading ““You mean to report us, of course,” she said.”
filled with satisfaction
From this reading “Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.”
possessive form of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
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 Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
in a state of sleep
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t put it out.”
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Emily laid down the extinguisher.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emily laid down the extinguisher.
a manually operated device for extinguishing small fires
From this reading Emily laid down the extinguisher.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Don’t put it out.”
set down according to a plan
From this reading Emily laid down the extinguisher.
to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “Don’t put it out.”
having a point
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading “Don’t put it out.”
to give an account or representation of in words
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
filled with satisfaction
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
possessive form of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The woman’s lean, long-fingered hand pointed to the candle.
the words that are spoken
From this reading Saying those words, she looked round the room, and satisfied herself that the other girls were asleep.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You mean to report us, of course,” she said.
Chapter 2 of "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins holds 145 sentences, grouped into 29 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 145 sentences of "I Say No", unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 145 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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 "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9092 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1629 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1629, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1819 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through "I Say No" section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of "I Say No" 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 "I Say No", each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
