Chapter 2 of Shifting For Himself is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Shifting For Himself is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE GUARDIAN’S LETTER. When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school. They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them. “There’s little Evans,” he said. “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
Chapter 2 of Shifting For Himself is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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.
the act of delivering or distributing something (as goods or mail)
From this reading “When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.”
English explorer who with John Speke was the first European to explore Lake Tanganyika (1821-1890)
From this reading “When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.”
United States anatomist who identified four pituitary hormones and discovered vitamin E (1882-1971)
From this reading ““There’s little Evans,” he said.”
a unit of magnetomotive force equal to 0.7958 ampere-turns
From this reading ““He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.””
possessive form of “guardian” — a person who cares for persons or property
held or filled or in use
From this reading “When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.”
plural of “rod” — a long thin implement made of metal or wood
From this reading “They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.”
used of the younger of two persons of the same name especially used to distinguish a son from his father
From this reading “They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.”
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.
In this reading “They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.”
In this reading “They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.”
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 When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
the act of delivering or distributing something (as goods or mail)
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
English explorer who with John Speke was the first European to explore Lake Tanganyika (1821-1890)
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
United States anatomist who identified four pituitary hormones and discovered vitamin E (1882-1971)
From this reading “There’s little Evans,” he said.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
a unit of magnetomotive force equal to 0.7958 ampere-turns
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
possessive form of “guardian” — a person who cares for persons or property
From this reading THE GUARDIAN’S LETTER.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “There’s little Evans,” he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading THE GUARDIAN’S LETTER.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “There’s little Evans,” he said.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
held or filled or in use
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
above and across; more than
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
plural of “rod” — a long thin implement made of metal or wood
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
(of fluids) moving or issuing in a stream
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “There’s little Evans,” he said.
make square
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
a light evening meal; served in early evening if dinner is at midday or served late in the evening at bedtime
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE GUARDIAN’S LETTER.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “There’s little Evans,” he said.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
in the direction of
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
the act of traveling by foot
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
at the time that
From this reading When supper was over, the boys took a walk, bringing round by the large square house occupied by Dr. Burton for his boarding-school.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “He looks as if he had a message for you, Gilbert.”
used of the younger of two persons of the same name especially used to distinguish a son from his father
From this reading They had got within a few rods when John observed one of the younger boys running towards them.
Chapter 2 of Shifting For Himself by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 114 sentences of Shifting For Himself, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Shifting For Himself by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 Shifting For Himself by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4606 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55598 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55598, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 383 minutes of reading across 922 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shifting For Himself section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Shifting For Himself 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 Shifting For Himself, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
