Chapter 2 of Madam How and Lady Why is here in full — 171 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Madam How and Lady Why is here in full — 171 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
So? You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad. You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children? Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that? Have you done wrong in asking me?
Chapter 2 of Madam How and Lady Why is here in full — 171 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
used to show sadness, pity, or regret
From this reading “Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?”
the verbal act of requesting
From this reading “Have you done wrong in asking me?”
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading “You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.”
past form of “illustrate” — clarify by giving an example of
past form of “kill” — cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading “You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?”
plural of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading “You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?”
filled with bewilderment
From this reading “You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.”
an irrecoverable state of devastation and destruction
From this reading “You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.”
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 show sadness, pity, or regret
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
(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 You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
surrounded by; in the middle of a group
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
react verbally
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the verbal act of requesting
From this reading Have you done wrong in asking me?
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
a young person of either sex
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
dearly loved
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading Have you done wrong in asking me?
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
past form of “illustrate” — clarify by giving an example of
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
past form of “kill” — cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Have you done wrong in asking me?
plural of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
information about recent and important events
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
filled with bewilderment
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
an irrecoverable state of devastation and destruction
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
experiencing or showing sorrow or unhappiness
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So?
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
which person or people
From this reading Alas, my dear child! who am I that I should answer you that?
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading You want to know why God killed all those people--mothers among them, too, and little children?
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading Have you done wrong in asking me?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You have been looking at that beautiful drawing of the ruin of Arica in the _Illustrated London News_: and it has puzzled you and made you sad.
Chapter 2 of Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley holds 171 sentences, grouped into 35 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 171 sentences of Madam How and Lady Why, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 171 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3041 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1697 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1697, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 253 minutes of reading across 609 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Madam How and Lady Why section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Madam How and Lady Why 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 Madam How and Lady Why, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
