Chapter 2 of Select Conversations with an Uncle 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 II
Chapter 2 of Select Conversations with an Uncle is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He stopped. He turned to nerve himself with whisky. "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?" My uncle looked unspeakable things. Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
Chapter 2 of Select Conversations with an Uncle 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.
movement that causes the formation of a curve
From this reading “Then in a whisper, bending towards me:”
any bundle of nerve fibers running to various organs and tissues of the body
From this reading “He turned to nerve himself with whisky.”
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading “"Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"”
of a quantity that can fulfill a need or requirement but without being abundant
From this reading “"Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"”
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading “My uncle looked unspeakable things.”
defying expression or description
From this reading “My uncle looked unspeakable things.”
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading “He turned to nerve himself with whisky.”
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading “Then in a whisper, bending towards me:”
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 Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
movement that causes the formation of a curve
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He stopped.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading My uncle looked unspeakable things.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My uncle looked unspeakable things.
any bundle of nerve fibers running to various organs and tissues of the body
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
express in words
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading He stopped.
of a quantity that can fulfill a need or requirement but without being abundant
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading My uncle looked unspeakable things.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
in the direction of
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
moved around an axis or center
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading My uncle looked unspeakable things.
defying expression or description
From this reading My uncle looked unspeakable things.
(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," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
at the time that
From this reading "Well," I said, when the pause seemed sufficient; "what did she say?"
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading Then in a whisper, bending towards me:
in the company of; together with
From this reading He turned to nerve himself with whisky.
Chapter 2 of Select Conversations with an Uncle by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells 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 2 holds 407 sentences of Select Conversations with an Uncle, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Select Conversations with an Uncle by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells 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 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 Select Conversations with an Uncle by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1209 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29472 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29472, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 100 minutes of reading across 242 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Select Conversations with an Uncle section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of Select Conversations with an Uncle 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 Select Conversations with an Uncle, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
