Chapter 2 of Rope is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Rope is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat. He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew. He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away. "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?" Henry cleared his throat.
Chapter 2 of Rope is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
the residue that remains when something is burned
From this reading “The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.”
touched lightly in passing; grazed against
From this reading “He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.”
not producing an intended effect
From this reading “He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.”
walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading “The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.”
plural of “motion” — the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading “He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.”
past form of “shudder” — shake, as from cold
From this reading “He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.”
past form of “tumble” — fall down, as if collapsing
From this reading “The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.”
lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance
From this reading “He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.”
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 join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
the residue that remains when something is burned
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
a youthful male person
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
touched lightly in passing; grazed against
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
a roll of tobacco for smoking
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
rid of objects or obstructions such as e.g. trees and brush
From this reading Henry cleared his throat.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
inflected form of “fling” — throw with force or recklessness
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading Henry cleared his throat.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
not producing an intended effect
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
plural of “motion” — the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
a son of your brother or sister
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
on one occasion
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
above and across; more than
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
past form of “shudder” — shake, as from cold
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
The passage at the back of the mouth.
From this reading Henry cleared his throat.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He put the cigar once more to his lips, shuddered, and flung it away.
consistent with fact or reality; not false
From this reading "Boy--" he said, at length, "Boy--is that true?"
past form of “tumble” — fall down, as if collapsing
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
in a messy, untidy manner
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
up to a particular time
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
a man's sleeveless garment worn underneath a coat
From this reading The older man sat limp in his chair, and stared until the ash of his cigar tumbled, untidily, over his waistcoat.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He brushed at it with uncertain, ineffective motions, but his eyes never left his nephew.
Chapter 2 of Rope by Holworthy Hall holds 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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 146 sentences of Rope, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Rope by Holworthy Hall exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 Rope by Holworthy Hall on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3792 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29570 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29570, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 316 minutes of reading across 759 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Rope section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Rope 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 Rope, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
