Chapter 2 of Stories by English Authors — Scotland is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Stories by English Authors — Scotland is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.” Then he sat into the fire. His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round. Sam’l felt a little anxious. Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
Chapter 2 of Stories by English Authors — Scotland is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
eagerly desirous
From this reading “Sam’l felt a little anxious.”
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading “His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.”
dwell
From this reading ““Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.””
a human limb; commonly used to refer to a whole limb but technically only the part of the limb between the knee and ankle
From this reading “Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.”
plural of “sander” — a power tool used for sanding wood; an endless loop of sandpaper is moved at high speed by an electric motor
From this reading “Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.”
comparative of “short” — primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading “Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.”
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading “Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.”
with suspicion
From this reading “Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.”
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 Sam’l felt a little anxious.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
eagerly desirous
From this reading Sam’l felt a little anxious.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
dwell
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Sam’l felt a little anxious.
start firing a weapon
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
a human limb; commonly used to refer to a whole limb but technically only the part of the limb between the knee and ankle
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Sam’l felt a little anxious.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
a silvery soft waxy metallic element of the alkali metal group
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
plural of “sander” — a power tool used for sanding wood; an endless loop of sandpaper is moved at high speed by an electric motor
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
comparative of “short” — primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
with suspicion
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he sat into the fire.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Na, na,” said Sam’l; “I’m to bide nae time.”
moved around an axis or center
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
(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 Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
at the time that
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
which person or people
From this reading Sanders Elshioner, who had one leg shorter than the other, but looked well when sitting, seemed suspiciously at home.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading His face was turned away from Bell, and when she spoke he answered her without looking round.
Chapter 2 of Stories by English Authors — Scotland by J. M. (James Matthew) [Contributor] Barrie holds 176 sentences, grouped into 36 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 176 sentences of Stories by English Authors — Scotland, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Stories by English Authors — Scotland by J. M. (James Matthew) [Contributor] Barrie exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 Stories by English Authors — Scotland by J. M. (James Matthew) [Contributor] Barrie on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1908 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2588 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2588, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 159 minutes of reading across 382 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Stories by English Authors — Scotland section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Stories by English Authors — Scotland 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 Stories by English Authors — Scotland, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
