Chapter 2 of Seven Short Plays is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Seven Short Plays is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us! Red Jack Smith! The man that was going to be waked! _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come? _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
Chapter 2 of Seven Short Plays is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
possessing life
From this reading “_Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?”
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading “_Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?”
death of a person
From this reading “_James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?”
a small worthless amount
From this reading “Red Jack Smith!”
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice
From this reading “_Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!”
United States dancer and choreographer who collaborated with Ruth Saint Denis (1891-1972)
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading “Red Jack Smith!”
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.
possessing life
From this reading _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
the act of departing
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
death of a person
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
a small worthless amount
From this reading Red Jack Smith!
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading Red Jack Smith!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
United States dancer and choreographer who collaborated with Ruth Saint Denis (1891-1972)
From this reading _Shawn Early:_ Is it alive you are, or is it dead you are?
Rhodesian statesman who declared independence of Zimbabwe from Great Britain (born in 1919)
From this reading Red Jack Smith!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading _Mrs. Tarpey:_ The Lord have mercy on us!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The man that was going to be waked!
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading _James Ryan:_ Is it back from the grave you are come?
Chapter 2 of Seven Short Plays by Lady Gregory holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 416 sentences of Seven Short Plays, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Seven Short Plays by Lady Gregory exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Seven Short Plays by Lady Gregory on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2916 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #41653 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #41653, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 243 minutes of reading across 584 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Seven Short Plays section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of Seven Short 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 Seven Short Plays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
