Chapter 2 of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby is here in full — 391 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby is here in full — 391 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head. "Well, well, perhaps she did. Perhaps she did. She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first. A great gift, that.
Chapter 2 of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby is here in full — 391 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading “She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.”
the shame you feel when your inadequacy or guilt is made public
From this reading “She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.”
something acquired without compensation
From this reading “A great gift, that.”
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading “She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.”
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading “She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.”
plural of “see” — the seat within a bishop's diocese where his cathedral is located
From this reading “She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.”
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading “She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.”
make physical contact with, come in contact with
From this reading “She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.”
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 She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Well, well, perhaps she did.
the shame you feel when your inadequacy or guilt is made public
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
something acquired without compensation
From this reading A great gift, that.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading A great gift, that.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
and nothing more
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
by chance
From this reading "Well, well, perhaps she did.
experiencing or manifesting pleasure
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
plural of “see” — the seat within a bishop's diocese where his cathedral is located
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
make physical contact with, come in contact with
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
precisely as stated
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well, well, perhaps she did.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading She was very merry; pleased with everything; to this day my wife always sees the cheerful side of things first.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She liked the tender look, that had in it just a touch of pleased embarrassment with which he shook his head.
Chapter 2 of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby by Kathleen Thompson Norris holds 391 sentences, grouped into 79 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 391 sentences of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby by Kathleen Thompson Norris exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 391 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby by Kathleen Thompson Norris on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6931 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4348 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4348, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 577 minutes of reading across 1387 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby 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 Poor, Dear Margaret Kirby, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
