Chapter 3 of The Beacon Second Reader is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Beacon Second Reader is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes. "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick. So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat. "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick. "I will give you this penny for her."
Chapter 3 of The Beacon Second Reader is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
From this reading “"I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.”
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading “"I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.”
someone who is a detective
From this reading “One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.”
gained or acquired; especially through merit or as a result of effort or action
From this reading “One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.”
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.”
exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent
From this reading “"Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.”
a particular situation
From this reading “One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.”
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 One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
a substance used to produce a shiny protective surface on footwear
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
someone who is a detective
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
gained or acquired; especially through merit or as a result of effort or action
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "I will give you this penny for her."
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading "I will give you this penny for her."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "I will give you this penny for her."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.
exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent
From this reading "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.
a particular situation
From this reading One day Dick earned a penny by blacking a man's shoes.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
in the near future
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
make an effort or attempt
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "I will try to buy a cat with this penny," thought Dick.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading So he started out and soon met a woman with a large cat.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Will you sell me that cat?" said Dick.
Chapter 3 of The Beacon Second Reader by James H. (James Hiram) Fassett holds 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 3 holds 451 sentences of The Beacon Second Reader, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Beacon Second Reader by James H. (James Hiram) Fassett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 3 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 Beacon Second Reader by James H. (James Hiram) Fassett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1366 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #15659 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #15659, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 113 minutes of reading across 274 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Beacon Second Reader section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of The Beacon Second Reader 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 Beacon Second Reader, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
