Chapter 2 of The Devil's Garden is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Devil's Garden is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He gulped and grew hot. "By Jupiter! I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!" Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife. She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
Chapter 2 of The Devil's Garden is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
freedom to act or judge on one's own
From this reading “She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.”
conformity with rules or standards
From this reading “She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.”
past form of “gulp” — to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught
From this reading “He gulped and grew hot.”
past form of “implore” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading “She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.”
the largest planet and the 5th from the sun; has many satellites and is one of the brightest objects in the night sky
From this reading “"By Jupiter!”
plural of “pig” — domestic swine
From this reading “I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"”
plural of “pleading” — (law) a statement in legal and logical form stating something on behalf of a party to a legal proceeding
From this reading “Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.”
closely constrained or constricted or constricting
From this reading “She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.”
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 She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He gulped and grew hot.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "By Jupiter!
freedom to act or judge on one's own
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
the activity of exerting your muscles in various ways to keep fit
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
conformity with rules or standards
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading He gulped and grew hot.
past form of “gulp” — to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught
From this reading He gulped and grew hot.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He gulped and grew hot.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading He gulped and grew hot.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
past form of “implore” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
the largest planet and the 5th from the sun; has many satellites and is one of the brightest objects in the night sky
From this reading "By Jupiter!
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
plural of “pig” — domestic swine
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
plural of “pleading” — (law) a statement in legal and logical form stating something on behalf of a party to a legal proceeding
From this reading Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
past form of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
express in words
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.
in or at that place or location
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
closely constrained or constricted or constricting
From this reading She had implored him to keep a tight hold of himself; and in fairness to her he must exercise discretion.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading I'll have to tell them what I think of them up there, and please the pigs!"
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Then he remembered the pleadings of his wife.
Chapter 2 of The Devil's Garden by W. B. (William Babington) Maxwell holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 406 sentences of The Devil's Garden, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Devil's Garden by W. B. (William Babington) Maxwell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 Devil's Garden by W. B. (William Babington) Maxwell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6899 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14605 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14605, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 574 minutes of reading across 1380 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Devil's Garden section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Devil's Garden 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 Devil's Garden, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
