Chapter 2 of The barber's chair is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The barber's chair is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials. =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=. =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts? Nothin’ in the paper? _Nutts._ Nothing.
Chapter 2 of The barber's chair is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
United States composer (1910-1981)
From this reading “SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.”
possessive form of “barber” — United States composer (1910-1981)
offering little or no hope
From this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
plural of “customer” — someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
plural of “dial” — the face of a timepiece; graduated to show the hours
From this reading “SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.”
to gather something into small wrinkles or folds
From this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
the act of removing hair with a razor
From this reading “=Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.”
touch (a body part) lightly so as to excite the surface nerves and cause uneasiness, laughter, or spasmodic movements
From this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
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.
move out of or depart from
In this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
In this reading “=Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?”
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 SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
United States composer (1910-1981)
From this reading =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.
possessive form of “barber” — United States composer (1910-1981)
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
offering little or no hope
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
plural of “customer” — someone who pays for goods or services
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
plural of “dial” — the face of a timepiece; graduated to show the hours
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
a form of address for a man
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
information about recent and important events
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
a canvas bag that is used to feed an animal (such as a horse); covers the muzzle and fastens at the top of the head
From this reading =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Nothin’ in the paper?
not one thing; not anything
From this reading _Nutts._ Nothing.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading Nothin’ in the paper?
to gather something into small wrinkles or folds
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
the place where some action occurs
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
the act of removing hair with a razor
From this reading =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.
do one's shopping
From this reading SCENE.--_A Barber’s Shop in Seven Dials.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading =Nutts= (the Barber) shaving =Nosebag=.
touch (a body part) lightly so as to excite the surface nerves and cause uneasiness, laughter, or spasmodic movements
From this reading =Pucker=, =Bleak=, =Tickle=, =Slowgoe=, =Nightflit=, =Limpy=, and other customers, come in and go out._ _Nightflit._ Any news, Mr Nutts?
Chapter 2 of The barber's chair by Douglas William Jerrold holds 174 sentences, grouped into 35 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 174 sentences of The barber's chair, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The barber's chair by Douglas William Jerrold exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 174 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 The barber's chair by Douglas William Jerrold on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3759 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #69868 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #69868, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 313 minutes of reading across 752 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The barber's chair section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The barber's chair 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 The barber's chair, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
