Chapter 2 of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea is here in full — 409 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 Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense." "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor. _Crash_! The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily. "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
Chapter 2 of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea is here in full — 409 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.
the supreme commander of a fleet; ranks above a vice admiral and below a fleet admiral
From this reading “The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.”
fall or come down violently
past form of “dance” — move in a graceful and rhythmical way
From this reading “The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.”
put to use
From this reading “"So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."”
(plural) optical instrument consisting of a frame that holds a pair of lenses for correcting defective vision
From this reading “The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.”
steering mechanism for a vessel; a mechanical device by which a vessel is steered
From this reading “"No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."”
be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading “"No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."”
in a petulant manner
From this reading “"No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."”
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 "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
the supreme commander of a fleet; ranks above a vice admiral and below a fleet admiral
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
fall or come down violently
From this reading _Crash_!
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
past form of “dance” — move in a graceful and rhythmical way
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
put to use
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
(plural) optical instrument consisting of a frame that holds a pair of lenses for correcting defective vision
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
to a considerable degree
From this reading The glasses danced as the admiral brought his hand down heavily.
steering mechanism for a vessel; a mechanical device by which a vessel is steered
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
not any; not one
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
a message that seems to convey no meaning
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
make a promise or commitment
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
in a petulant manner
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
male cat
From this reading "No, no, Tom," cried the captain, testily; "I can manage the helm."
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
someone who visits
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "But I want to be a doctor, father," said Syd, looking hard at the visitor.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "So, thank your uncle for his promise to exert his interest, and let's have no more nonsense."
Chapter 2 of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea by George Manville Fenn holds 409 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 409 sentences of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea by George Manville Fenn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 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 Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea by George Manville Fenn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6856 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21373 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21373, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 571 minutes of reading across 1372 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea 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 Syd Belton: The Boy Who Would Not Go to Sea, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
