Chapter 2 of The Dead Alive is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Dead Alive is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE NEW FACES. IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father. The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair. He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well. His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
Chapter 2 of The Dead Alive is here in full — 111 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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 act of being present (at a meeting or event etc.)
From this reading “His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.”
being long-lasting and recurrent or characterized by long suffering
From this reading “The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.”
of persons; not subject to change
From this reading “The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.”
someone who is incapacitated by a chronic illness or injury
From this reading “The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.”
any painful disorder of the joints or muscles or connective tissues
From this reading “The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.”
not married or related to the unmarried state
From this reading “His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.”
in a weary manner
From this reading “He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.”
a man whose wife is dead especially one who has not remarried
From this reading “His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.”
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 The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
accomplishment of an objective
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
the act of being present (at a meeting or event etc.)
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
being long-lasting and recurrent or characterized by long suffering
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
not invading healthy tissue
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
of persons; not subject to change
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
a female human offspring
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading THE NEW FACES.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
someone who is incapacitated by a chronic illness or injury
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
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 His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
a form of address for a man
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading THE NEW FACES.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
and nothing more
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
past form of “present” — give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
conforming to the established language usage of educated native speakers
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
any painful disorder of the joints or muscles or connective tissues
From this reading The old man had become a confirmed invalid, confined by chronic rheumatism to his chair.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE NEW FACES.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
not married or related to the unmarried state
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading IMMEDIATELY on my arrival, I was presented to Mr. Meadowcroft, the father.
in a weary manner
From this reading He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
(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 He received me kindly, and a little wearily as well.
a man whose wife is dead especially one who has not remarried
From this reading His only unmarried daughter (he had long since been left a widower) was in the room, in attendance on her father.
Chapter 2 of The Dead Alive by Wilkie Collins holds 111 sentences, grouped into 23 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 111 sentences of The Dead Alive, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Dead Alive by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 111 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 Dead Alive by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1539 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #7891 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #7891, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 128 minutes of reading across 308 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Dead Alive section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of The Dead Alive 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 Dead Alive, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
