Chapter 2 of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful is here in full — 236 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful is here in full — 236 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning. When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work. "I foresaw this," he replied. "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling. "It will hardly be optional," I said.
Chapter 2 of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful is here in full — 236 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/47 · 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 or process of complicating
From this reading “"Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.”
hold back to a later time
From this reading “"Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.”
inflected form of “foresee” — realize beforehand
From this reading “"I foresaw this," he replied.”
of an obscure nature
From this reading “"Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.”
possible but not necessary; left to personal choice
From this reading “"It will hardly be optional," I said.”
a formal expression by a meeting; agreed to by a vote
From this reading “The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.”
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading “The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.”
plural of “study” — a detailed critical inspection
From this reading “"Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.”
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.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
the act or process of complicating
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
hold back to a later time
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
inflected form of “foresee” — realize beforehand
From this reading "I foresaw this," he replied.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
only a very short time before
From this reading "It will hardly be optional," I said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I foresaw this," he replied.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
of an obscure nature
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
not any; not one
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
possible but not necessary; left to personal choice
From this reading "It will hardly be optional," I said.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
above and across; more than
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
by chance
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "I foresaw this," he replied.
a formal expression by a meeting; agreed to by a vote
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "It will hardly be optional," I said.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
comparative of “strong” — having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
plural of “study” — a detailed critical inspection
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
in or at that place or location
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "I foresaw this," he replied.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
up to a particular time
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
the act of using
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The resolution I had made over night was stronger by the morning.
at the time that
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading When I met Martelli I told him there would be no use in sitting down to work.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Perhaps it will be better to defer your studies until you are out of this mysterious complication," smiling.
Chapter 2 of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful by William Clark Russell holds 236 sentences, grouped into 48 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 236 sentences of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful by William Clark Russell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 236 sentences, grouped into 48 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 48 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 48 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 Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful by William Clark Russell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3004 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #62084 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #62084, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 250 minutes of reading across 601 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of The Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful 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 Deceased Wife's Sister, and My Beautiful, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
