Chapter 4 of Second Plays is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Second Plays is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JILL (at her desk). And all my sums have done themselves wrong. (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver? OLIVER. Fifty-six.
Chapter 4 of Second Plays is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading “JILL (at her desk).”
the cardinal number that is the sum of eight and one
From this reading “(Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?”
United States jazz musician who influenced the style of Louis Armstrong (1885-1938)
From this reading “(Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?”
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading “(Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?”
a thin cylindrical pointed writing implement; a rod of marking substance encased in wood
From this reading “(Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?”
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading “(Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?”
plural of “sum” — a quantity of money
From this reading “And all my sums have done themselves wrong.”
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading “And all my sums have done themselves wrong.”
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.
(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 And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading JILL (at her desk).
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading JILL (at her desk).
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
being six more than fifty
From this reading Fifty-six.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading JILL (at her desk).
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading JILL (at her desk).
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
the cardinal number that is the sum of eight and one
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
United States jazz musician who influenced the style of Louis Armstrong (1885-1938)
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
a thin cylindrical pointed writing implement; a rod of marking substance encased in wood
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
plural of “sum” — a quantity of money
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
used when the people doing the action are also its object
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
in the company of; together with
From this reading (Hard at it with paper and pencil) What's nine times seven, Oliver?
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading And all my sums have done themselves wrong.
Chapter 4 of Second Plays by A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne holds 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 399 sentences of Second Plays, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Second Plays by A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 Second Plays by A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Second Plays section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Second Plays 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 Second Plays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
