Chapter 2 of The Best American Humorous Short Stories is here in full — 406 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 The Best American Humorous Short Stories is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“That’s your business, sir, not mine.” “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!” “I hope not. I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.” “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
Chapter 2 of The Best American Humorous Short Stories is here in full — 406 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.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading ““That’s your business, sir, not mine.””
the habitation of wild animals
From this reading ““Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!””
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading ““No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.””
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading ““Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!””
the land on which real estate is located
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading ““That’s your business, sir, not mine.””
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading ““Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!””
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading “I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.””
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.
a usually secretive or illicit sexual relationship
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
the habitation of wild animals
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading “I hope not.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
engage in
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
not any; not one
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
term of address for a man
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sare; but I tro it avay in de _vatare!_” “That’s not my fault.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Den I make von _mauvaise affaire_—von gran mistake!”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I don’t think you have thrown your money away in the _land_.”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “That’s your business, sir, not mine.”
Chapter 2 of The Best American Humorous Short Stories by Alexander[Editor] Jessup holds 406 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 406 sentences of The Best American Humorous Short Stories, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Best American Humorous Short Stories by Alexander[Editor] Jessup exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 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 The Best American Humorous Short Stories by Alexander[Editor] Jessup on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5455 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10947 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10947, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 454 minutes of reading across 1091 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Best American Humorous Short Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Best American Humorous Short Stories 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 Best American Humorous Short Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
