Chapter 2 of Lady Windermere's Fan is here in full — 307 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Lady Windermere's Fan is here in full — 307 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
LORD DARLINGTON. I couldn’t! A man can’t tell these things about another man! But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you. That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
Chapter 2 of Lady Windermere's Fan is here in full — 307 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/61 · 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.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.”
a rude expression intended to offend or hurt
From this reading “That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.”
apprehended with certainty
From this reading “But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.”
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading “LORD DARLINGTON.”
a magnitude or frequency relative to a time unit
From this reading “That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.”
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading “That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.”
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading “A man can’t tell these things about another man!”
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.”
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 A man can’t tell these things about another man!
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I couldn’t!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LORD DARLINGTON.
the act of departing
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I couldn’t!
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
a rude expression intended to offend or hurt
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading LORD DARLINGTON.
engage in
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
a magnitude or frequency relative to a time unit
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
past form of “spare” — refrain from harming
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
express in words
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That insult, at any rate, you would have been spared.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading A man can’t tell these things about another man!
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading But if I had known he was going to make you ask her here to-night, I think I would have told you.
Chapter 2 of Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde holds 307 sentences, grouped into 62 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 307 sentences of Lady Windermere's Fan, unabridged, divided into 62 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 307 sentences, grouped into 62 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 62 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 62 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 Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1205 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #790 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #790, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 100 minutes of reading across 241 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Lady Windermere's Fan section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of Lady Windermere's Fan 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 Lady Windermere's Fan, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
