Chapter 2 of Nursery Comedies is here in full — 486 sentences across 98 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Nursery Comedies is here in full — 486 sentences across 98 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
M.--Of course she did! and then? J.--I went to see Cousin Peter. M.--Cousin Peter! And what did the good man say to you? J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
Chapter 2 of Nursery Comedies is here in full — 486 sentences across 98 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/97 · 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.
young of domestic cattle
From this reading “J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.”
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading “M.--Of course she did! and then?”
the child of your aunt or uncle
From this reading “J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.”
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading “J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.”
to a great degree or extent
From this reading “J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.”
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading “J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.”
express in words
From this reading “And what did the good man say to you?”
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.”
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.
as might be expected
In this reading “M.--Of course she did! and then?”
In this reading “And what did the good man say to 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 J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
young of domestic cattle
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
the child of your aunt or uncle
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading J.--Not much; but he gave me a calf.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
express in words
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading M.--Of course she did! and then?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading J.--I went to see Cousin Peter.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading And what did the good man say to you?
Chapter 2 of Nursery Comedies by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell holds 486 sentences, grouped into 98 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 486 sentences of Nursery Comedies, unabridged, divided into 98 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Nursery Comedies by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 486 sentences, grouped into 98 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 98 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 98 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 Nursery Comedies by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 965 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #47609 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #47609, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 80 minutes of reading across 193 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Nursery Comedies section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of Nursery Comedies 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 Nursery Comedies, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
