Chapter 2 of The black spaniel, and other stories is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 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 spaniel, and other stories is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand. He did not go, however, and for this reason. On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England. An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay. I remonstrated with him, but in vain.
Chapter 2 of The black spaniel, and other stories is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
cause to be slowed down or delayed
From this reading “An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.”
have supper; eat dinner
From this reading “On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.”
without good reason
From this reading “He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.”
possessive form of “moment” — a particular point in time
a person who requires medical care
From this reading “An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.”
capital and largest city of Italy; on the Tiber; seat of the Roman Catholic Church; formerly the capital of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire
From this reading “On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.”
a request to be present
From this reading “An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.”
compelling immediate action
From this reading “An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.”
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 “On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.”
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 An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I remonstrated with him, but in vain.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
cause to be slowed down or delayed
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
have supper; eat dinner
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
a division of the United Kingdom
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
the act of retaining something
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I remonstrated with him, but in vain.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
without good reason
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
possessive form of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
absolutely essential
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
a brief written record
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
a person who requires medical care
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
a rational motive for a belief or action
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I remonstrated with him, but in vain.
capital and largest city of Italy; on the Tiber; seat of the Roman Catholic Church; formerly the capital of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
a request to be present
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He spoke lightly, holding the note open in his hand.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading He did not go, however, and for this reason.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
compelling immediate action
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
characteristic of false pride; having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
From this reading I remonstrated with him, but in vain.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
in the company of; together with
From this reading On the morning of the day he was to dine with Vernon, he left Rome for England.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading An urgent summons from a patient, he told me, made it necessary for him to go to London without a moment’s delay.
Chapter 2 of The black spaniel, and other stories by Robert Hichens holds 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 431 sentences of The black spaniel, and other stories, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The black spaniel, and other stories by Robert Hichens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 spaniel, and other stories by Robert Hichens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6333 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #76971 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #76971, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 527 minutes of reading across 1267 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The black spaniel, and other stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of The black spaniel, and other 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 black spaniel, and other stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
