Chapter 2 of The Dorrington Deed-Box is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Dorrington Deed-Box is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee. Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it. It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing. I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book. I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
Chapter 2 of The Dorrington Deed-Box is here in full — 438 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
past form of “brew” — prepare by brewing
From this reading “Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.”
a roll of tobacco for smoking
From this reading “After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.”
a beverage consisting of an infusion of ground coffee beans
From this reading “After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.”
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading “Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.”
provided with artificial light
From this reading “After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.”
an extended fictional work in prose; usually in the form of a story
From this reading “It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading “I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.”
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading “Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.”
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 “After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.”
In this reading “I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.”
In this reading “I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my 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 After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
later than; following
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
in a state of sleep
From this reading I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
past form of “brew” — prepare by brewing
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
a roll of tobacco for smoking
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
a beverage consisting of an infusion of ground coffee beans
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
the quantity a cup will hold
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
the general atmosphere of a place or situation and the effect that it has on people
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
plural of “line” — a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
provided with artificial light
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading After dinner I lit a cigar, and Mrs. Crofting brought her coffee.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
an extended fictional work in prose; usually in the form of a story
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
a full supply
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
From this reading I had not read six lines before I was asleep.
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
unpleasant or disagreeable to the senses
From this reading It had a flavour of its own too, novel, but not unpleasing.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Truly it was excellent coffee, and brewed as I like it--strong and black, and plenty of it.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I took one cupful, and brought another to my side as I lay on the sofa with my book.
Chapter 2 of The Dorrington Deed-Box by Arthur Morrison holds 438 sentences, grouped into 88 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 438 sentences of The Dorrington Deed-Box, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Dorrington Deed-Box by Arthur Morrison exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 438 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 Dorrington Deed-Box by Arthur Morrison on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3543 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #53341 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #53341, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 295 minutes of reading across 709 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Dorrington Deed-Box section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The Dorrington Deed-Box 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 Dorrington Deed-Box, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
