Chapter 4 of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
3. He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale. 4. He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay. 5.
Chapter 4 of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader is here in full — 444 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
an open river valley (in a hilly area)
From this reading “He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.”
the motion characteristic of fluids (liquids or gases)
From this reading “He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.”
a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards
From this reading “He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.”
third-person singular of “sing” — deliver by singing
From this reading “He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.”
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading “He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.”
plural of “stream” — a natural body of running water flowing on or under the earth
From this reading “He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.”
in an affectionate or loving manner (“sweet” is sometimes a poetic or informal variant of “sweetly”)
From this reading “He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.”
a long depression in the surface of the land that usually contains a river
From this reading “He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 3.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 4.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 5.
(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 He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
an open river valley (in a hilly area)
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
the motion characteristic of fluids (liquids or gases)
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
recently made, produced, or harvested
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
third-person singular of “sing” — deliver by singing
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
plural of “stream” — a natural body of running water flowing on or under the earth
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
in an affectionate or loving manner (“sweet” is sometimes a poetic or informal variant of “sweetly”)
From this reading He made each bird that sings So sweetly all the day; He made each flower that springs So bright, so fresh, so gay.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
a long depression in the surface of the land that usually contains a river
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
From this reading He made the streams so wide, That flow through wood and vale; He made the rills so small, That leap down hill and dale.
Chapter 4 of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader by William Holmes McGuffey holds 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 4 holds 444 sentences of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader by William Holmes McGuffey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 444 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 4 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 McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader by William Holmes McGuffey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1733 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14668 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14668, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 144 minutes of reading across 347 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader 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 McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
