Chapter 2 of The Diary of a Man of Fifty is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Diary of a Man of Fifty is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years." "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend. I was silent a moment. "I should like to see that." He too was silent.
Chapter 2 of The Diary of a Man of Fifty is here in full — 240 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/48 · 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.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading “"Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."”
without stop or interruption
From this reading “"And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.”
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading “"And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.”
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading “"And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.”
a particular point in time
From this reading “I was silent a moment.”
a word picture of a person's appearance and character
From this reading “"And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.”
marked by absence of sound
From this reading “I was silent a moment.”
a late time of life
From this reading “"Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."”
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 "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
without stop or interruption
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He too was silent.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I was silent a moment.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "I should like to see that."
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
a particular point in time
From this reading I was silent a moment.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
a word picture of a person's appearance and character
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I should like to see that."
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "I should like to see that."
marked by absence of sound
From this reading I was silent a moment.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I should like to see that."
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "And there's a portrait of Madame de Salvi," continued my friend.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I should like to see that."
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading He too was silent.
the cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-six and one
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was silent a moment.
a late time of life
From this reading "Ah, they have changed it, then--in twenty-seven years."
Chapter 2 of The Diary of a Man of Fifty by Henry James holds 240 sentences, grouped into 48 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 240 sentences of The Diary of a Man of Fifty, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Diary of a Man of Fifty by Henry James exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 240 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 Diary of a Man of Fifty by Henry James on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 949 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2426 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2426, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 79 minutes of reading across 190 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Diary of a Man of Fifty section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Diary of a Man of Fifty 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 Diary of a Man of Fifty, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
