Chapter 2 of The Business of Life is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Business of Life is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"A lady to see you, sir," said Farris. Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book. "A _lady_?" "Yes, sir." "Well, who is she, Farris?"
Chapter 2 of The Business of Life is here in full — 376 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/75 · 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 written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
a polite name for any woman
From this reading “"A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.”
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
term of address for a man
From this reading “"A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “"Well, who is she, Farris?"”
an affirmative
From this reading “"Yes, sir."”
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 “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
In this reading “Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.”
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 "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Well, who is she, Farris?"
a polite name for any woman
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
above and across; more than
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Well, who is she, Farris?"
term of address for a man
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Desboro, lying on the sofa, glanced up over his book.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well, who is she, Farris?"
which person or people
From this reading "Well, who is she, Farris?"
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, sir."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "A lady to see you, sir," said Farris.
Chapter 2 of The Business of Life by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers holds 376 sentences, grouped into 76 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 376 sentences of The Business of Life, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Business of Life by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 376 sentences, grouped into 76 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 76 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 76 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 Business of Life by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8927 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43703 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43703, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1786 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Business of Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of The Business of Life 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 Business of Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
