Chapter 2 of The Best Policy is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 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 Policy is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“To see me!” he exclaimed. “Why, her dealings are all with you.” “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained. “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress. She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
Chapter 2 of The Best Policy is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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 part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading “She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.”
demanding attention
From this reading “She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.”
social or verbal interchange (usually followed by “with”)
From this reading ““Why, her dealings are all with you.””
psychological suffering
From this reading ““She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.”
past form of “explain” — make plain and comprehensible
From this reading ““It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.”
promise of reimbursement in the case of loss; paid to people or companies so concerned about hazards that they have made prepayments to an insurance company
From this reading ““It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.”
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading ““She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.”
a source of difficulty
From this reading “She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.”
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.
In this reading ““She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.”
as might be expected
In this reading ““She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.”
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.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
(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 “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
demanding attention
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
social or verbal interchange (usually followed by “with”)
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
relatively deep or strong; affecting one deeply
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
psychological suffering
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading “To see me!” he exclaimed.
past form of “explain” — make plain and comprehensible
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “To see me!” he exclaimed.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
promise of reimbursement in the case of loss; paid to people or companies so concerned about hazards that they have made prepayments to an insurance company
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “To see me!” he exclaimed.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “To see me!” he exclaimed.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “To see me!” he exclaimed.
a source of difficulty
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
at the time that
From this reading She was crying when she was here this afternoon, but I couldn’t understand what the trouble was.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “It has something to do with insurance,” his wife explained.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Why, her dealings are all with you.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “She knows you’re in that business, of course, and she is in deep distress.
Chapter 2 of The Best Policy by Elliott Flower holds 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 417 sentences of The Best Policy, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Best Policy by Elliott Flower exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Policy by Elliott Flower on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3351 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36393 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36393, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 279 minutes of reading across 671 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Best Policy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The Best Policy 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 Policy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
