Chapter 2 of Lost in the Wilds is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Lost in the Wilds is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before. Another bad beginning. What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning? He thought of Bruce and his spider. He had not tried seven times yet.
Chapter 2 of Lost in the Wilds is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading “Another bad beginning.”
Australian physician and bacteriologist who described the bacterium that causes undulant fever or brucellosis (1855-1931)
From this reading “He thought of Bruce and his spider.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading “He had not tried seven times yet.”
hurting
From this reading “This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.”
predatory arachnid with eight legs, two poison fangs, two feelers, and usually two silk-spinning organs at the back end of the body; they spin silk to make cocoons for eggs or traps for prey
From this reading “He thought of Bruce and his spider.”
not moving or operating freely
From this reading “This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.”
fastener consisting of a narrow strip of welded metal used to join steel members
From this reading “What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?”
not necessary
From this reading “This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.”
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 “He had not tried seven times yet.”
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 What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading Another bad beginning.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading Another bad beginning.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading Another bad beginning.
Australian physician and bacteriologist who described the bacterium that causes undulant fever or brucellosis (1855-1931)
From this reading He thought of Bruce and his spider.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He thought of Bruce and his spider.
used to form the superlative
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
hurting
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
predatory arachnid with eight legs, two poison fangs, two feelers, and usually two silk-spinning organs at the back end of the body; they spin silk to make cocoons for eggs or traps for prey
From this reading He thought of Bruce and his spider.
not moving or operating freely
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
fastener consisting of a narrow strip of welded metal used to join steel members
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading He thought of Bruce and his spider.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
not necessary
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
the act of using
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This, he told himself, was most unnecessary, as he was sore enough and stiff enough before.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What was the use of stopping short at a bad beginning?
but in spite of that
From this reading He had not tried seven times yet.
Chapter 2 of Lost in the Wilds by Eleanor Stredder holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 403 sentences of Lost in the Wilds, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Lost in the Wilds by Eleanor Stredder exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Lost in the Wilds by Eleanor Stredder on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3238 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43640 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43640, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 269 minutes of reading across 648 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Lost in the Wilds section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Lost in the Wilds 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 Lost in the Wilds, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
