Chapter 2 of The Black Diamond is here in full — 419 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 Black Diamond is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain. He couldn’t help admiring her. ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said. ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
Chapter 2 of The Black Diamond is here in full — 419 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.
-ing form of “admire” — feel admiration for
From this reading “He couldn’t help admiring her.”
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading “Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.”
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading “‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.”
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading “‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .”
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading “Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.”
a person who requires medical care
From this reading “Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.”
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading “Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.”
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading “Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.”
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.
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.
-ing form of “admire” — feel admiration for
From this reading He couldn’t help admiring her.
(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 ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He couldn’t help admiring her.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He couldn’t help admiring her.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading He couldn’t help admiring her.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
a person who requires medical care
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
precisely, exactly
From this reading ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
a special situation
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Mrs Moseley smiled her tired, patient smile; but the doctor knew she was in pain.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
in the company of; together with
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘You’ll forgive me all right, doctor,’ she said.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading ‘Now, what could I do with the poor young thing lying here like that .
Chapter 2 of The Black Diamond by Francis Brett Young holds 419 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 419 sentences of The Black Diamond, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Black Diamond by Francis Brett Young exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 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 Black Diamond by Francis Brett Young on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10566 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #48813 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #48813, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2114 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Black Diamond section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Black Diamond 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 Black Diamond, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
