Chapter 2 of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I wonder you never married, Baldwin.” The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room. The young man nodded. Then the candid Baldwin told him her history. “I can't defend my own position.
Chapter 2 of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
United States author who was an outspoken critic of racism (1924-1987)
From this reading ““I wonder you never married, Baldwin.””
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading “Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.”
argue or speak in defense of
From this reading ““I can't defend my own position.”
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading “The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.”
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading “The young man nodded.”
a tube with a small bowl at one end; used for smoking tobacco
From this reading “The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.”
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading “The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.”
someone who purchases and maintains an inventory of goods to be sold
From this reading “The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.”
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 The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
United States author who was an outspoken critic of racism (1924-1987)
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I can't defend my own position.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
argue or speak in defense of
From this reading “I can't defend my own position.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
an old word for “before”
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
a young female
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
the aggregate of past events
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The young man nodded.
joined in matrimony
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I can't defend my own position.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading The young man nodded.
an announcement containing information about an event
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading “I can't defend my own position.
a tube with a small bowl at one end; used for smoking tobacco
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
the particular portion of space occupied by something
From this reading “I can't defend my own position.
gathered for protruding fullness
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading Then the candid Baldwin told him her history.
in the direction of
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
someone who purchases and maintains an inventory of goods to be sold
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered-- “Did you notice that girl at all?” and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “I wonder you never married, Baldwin.”
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The young man nodded.
Chapter 2 of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories by Louis Becke holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 403 sentences of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories by Louis Becke exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories by Louis Becke on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2863 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24896 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24896, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 238 minutes of reading across 573 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories 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 Ebbing Of The Tide South Sea Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
