Chapter 20 of Second Plays is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Second Plays is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MRS. KNOWLE. Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady." If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me. Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
Chapter 20 of Second Plays is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading “Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."”
inflected form of “forget” — dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading “Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."”
French biochemist who (with Jacques Monod) studied regulatory processes in cells (born in 1920)
From this reading “Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.”
a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading “Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."”
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading “Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading “Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.”
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading “Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."”
the basic unit of money in South Korea
From this reading “Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."”
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 If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
anew
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rules
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
inflected form of “forget” — dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
French biochemist who (with Jacques Monod) studied regulatory processes in cells (born in 1920)
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading KNOWLE.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading MRS.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading Seven times I refused him, and seven times he came again--like Jacob.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
the basic unit of money in South Korea
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading If Mr. Knowle had had a faint heart, he would never have won me.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Mr. Coote, you are forgetting what the poet said--Shakespeare, or was it the other man?--"Faint heart never won fair lady."
Chapter 20 of Second Plays by A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne holds 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 20 holds 407 sentences of Second Plays, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Second Plays by A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 20 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.
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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.
