Chapter 2 of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“But what IS it? I don’t understand. What does this man accuse you of?” “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.” Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
Chapter 2 of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
bring an accusation against; level a charge against
From this reading “What does this man accuse you of?””
a battle in the War of the Grand Alliance in Ireland in 1690; William III defeated the deposed James II and so ended the Catholicism that had been reintroduced in England by the Stuarts
From this reading “Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.”
a system of timekeeping that defines the beginning and length and divisions of the year
From this reading ““Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.””
an excerpt cut from a newspaper or magazine
From this reading “Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.”
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading “Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.”
(criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act
From this reading ““Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.””
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading “Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.”
past form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading “Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.”
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.
bring an accusation against; level a charge against
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
a battle in the War of the Grand Alliance in Ireland in 1690; William III defeated the deposed James II and so ended the Catholicism that had been reintroduced in England by the Stuarts
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “But what IS it?
a system of timekeeping that defines the beginning and length and divisions of the year
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
an excerpt cut from a newspaper or magazine
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
(criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I don’t understand.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
start firing a weapon
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I don’t understand.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “But what IS it?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “But what IS it?
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Oh, pretty nearly every crime in the calendar.”
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
caused to fall to the ground
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
past form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading Boyne had tossed the clipping down, and thrown himself comfortably into an arm-chair near the fire.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading I don’t understand.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “But what IS it?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading What does this man accuse you of?”
Chapter 2 of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 by Edith Wharton holds 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 199 sentences of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 by Edith Wharton exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 by Edith Wharton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2382 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #306 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #306, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 198 minutes of reading across 477 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2 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 Early Short Fiction of Edith Wharton — Part 2, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
