Chapter 2 of The Duchess of Malfi is here in full — 239 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 Duchess of Malfi is here in full — 239 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FERDINAND. For that You must give great men leave to take their times. Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd. You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root. BOSOLA.
Chapter 2 of The Duchess of Malfi is here in full — 239 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.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading “Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.”
doubt about someone's honesty
From this reading “Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.”
an old form of “does”
From this reading “Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.”
the king of Castile and Aragon who ruled jointly with his wife Isabella
From this reading “FERDINAND.”
many times at short intervals
From this reading “You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.”
(botany) the usually underground organ that lacks buds or leaves or nodes; absorbs water and mineral salts; usually it anchors the plant to the ground
From this reading “You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.”
not often
From this reading “Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.”
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading “You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.”
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.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BOSOLA.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
doubt about someone's honesty
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
an old form of “does”
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
the king of Castile and Aragon who ruled jointly with his wife Isabella
From this reading FERDINAND.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
go away from a place
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
the force of workers available
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
many times at short intervals
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
(botany) the usually underground organ that lacks buds or leaves or nodes; absorbs water and mineral salts; usually it anchors the plant to the ground
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
not often
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
carry out
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading You see the oft shaking of the cedar-tree Fastens it more at root.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Distrust doth cause us seldom be deceiv'd.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading For that You must give great men leave to take their times.
Chapter 2 of The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster holds 239 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 239 sentences of The Duchess of Malfi, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 239 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 Duchess of Malfi by John Webster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2587 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2232 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2232, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 215 minutes of reading across 518 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Duchess of Malfi section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of The Duchess of Malfi 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 Duchess of Malfi, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
