Chapter 2 of Tales of Mean Streets is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Tales of Mean Streets is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more. Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also. "O--O--Billy! Billy! O my Gawd!
Chapter 2 of Tales of Mean Streets is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
in addition
From this reading “Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.”
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading “"O--O--Billy!”
a young person of either sex
From this reading “"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.”
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading “"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.”
possessive form of “i” — a nonmetallic element belonging to the halogens; used especially in medicine and photography and in dyes; occurs naturally only in combination in small quantities (as in sea water or rocks)
From this reading “"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.”
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading “Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.”
utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.”
so extremely intense as to evoke screams
From this reading “"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.”
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.
anew
In this reading “"I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.”
In this reading “Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.”
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 Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
in addition
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading "O--O--Billy!
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
a young person of either sex
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading O my Gawd!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
possessive form of “i” — a nonmetallic element belonging to the halogens; used especially in medicine and photography and in dyes; occurs naturally only in combination in small quantities (as in sea water or rocks)
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading O my Gawd!
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
on one occasion
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
express in words
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
so extremely intense as to evoke screams
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
at once
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Lizer rose and went to the next room; and straightway came a scream from her also.
at the time that
From this reading "I's 'f'aid o' g'anny--I's 'f'aid o' g'anny!" was all the child could say; and when he had said it, he fell to screaming once more.
Chapter 2 of Tales of Mean Streets by Arthur Morrison holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 404 sentences of Tales of Mean Streets, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Tales of Mean Streets by Arthur Morrison exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Tales of Mean Streets by Arthur Morrison on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2502 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40569 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40569, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 208 minutes of reading across 501 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tales of Mean Streets section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Tales of Mean Streets 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 Tales of Mean Streets, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
