Chapter 2 of Romance is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Romance is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
My companions rode silently. After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging. Ralph reined his horse beside mine. “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape. I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
Chapter 2 of Romance is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
preventing movement
From this reading “After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.”
slightly wet
From this reading “After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.”
in a miserable manner
From this reading ““I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.”
become covered with mist
From this reading “After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.”
past form of “rein” — control and direct with or as if by reins
From this reading “Ralph reined his horse beside mine.”
scratch repeatedly
From this reading ““I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.”
without speaking
From this reading “My companions rode silently.”
utter obscenities or profanities
From this reading “I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.””
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 After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
later than; following
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
anew
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
next to; at the side of
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
preventing movement
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
plural of “companion” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading My companions rode silently.
slightly wet
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
come to pass
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
plural of “house” — a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
in a miserable manner
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
become covered with mist
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My companions rode silently.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
plural of “pound” — 16 ounces avoirdupois
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
past form of “rein” — control and direct with or as if by reins
From this reading Ralph reined his horse beside mine.
inflected form of “ride” — sit and travel on the back of animal, usually while controlling its motions
From this reading My companions rode silently.
scratch repeatedly
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
without speaking
From this reading My companions rode silently.
feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
utter obscenities or profanities
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
a formal word for “on”
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
a community of people smaller than a town
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
a Caucasian
From this reading After we had passed the houses of a little village a heavy mist fell upon us, white, damp, and clogging.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I swear I wouldn’t have had it happen, not for a thousand pounds--not for ten.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “I’m sorry,” he began again, “I’m miserably sorry I got you into this scrape.
Chapter 2 of Romance by Joseph Conrad holds 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 418 sentences of Romance, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Romance by Joseph Conrad exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Romance by Joseph Conrad on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11053 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17642 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17642, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2211 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Romance section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of Romance 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 Romance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
