Chapter 2 of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1 is here in full — 326 sentences across 66 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1 is here in full — 326 sentences across 66 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
+Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer. Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen. Bute if he beo in boke ilered. And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne. 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Chapter 2 of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1 is here in full — 326 sentences across 66 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/65 · 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 male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading “Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.”
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading “Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.”
negation of a word or group of words
From this reading “Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.”
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Bute if he beo in boke ilered.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
a colorless odorless gaseous element that give a red glow in a vacuum tube; one of the six inert gasses; occurs in the air in small amounts
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
negation of a word or group of words
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ne may non ryhtwis king. vnder criste seoluen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And he. his wyttes swiþe wel kunne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading +Þ+vs queþ alured. englene urouer.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 40 And he cunne lettres. lokie him{}seolf one. hw he schule his lond laweliche holde. iv Þus queþ Alured.
Chapter 2 of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1 by Joseph[Editor] Hall holds 326 sentences, grouped into 66 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 326 sentences of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1, unabridged, divided into 66 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1 by Joseph[Editor] Hall exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 326 sentences, grouped into 66 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 66 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 66 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #26413, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 578 minutes of reading across 1388 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
