Chapter 2 of The Elevator is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Elevator is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.” _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.” _Miss Lawton_: “Poor papa!” _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened. I’m sure there’s no danger.”
Chapter 2 of The Elevator is here in full — 451 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
a group of persons together in one place
From this reading “_Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.”
a town in southwest Oklahoma
United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)
a daughter of your brother or sister
From this reading “_Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.””
acceptance of despair
From this reading “_Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.””
a descent as through liquid (especially through water)
From this reading “_Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.””
in a grave and sedate manner
From this reading “_Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.””
migratory
From this reading “_Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.”
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 to or toward a former location
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury
From this reading I’m sure there’s no danger.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
made afraid
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
a group of persons together in one place
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I’m sure there’s no danger.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
a town in southwest Oklahoma
From this reading _Miss Lawton_: “Poor papa!”
United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading _Miss Lawton_: “Poor papa!”
a form of address for a man
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
a daughter of your brother or sister
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
not any; not one
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading _Miss Lawton_: “Poor papa!”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading _Miss Lawton_: “Poor papa!”
acceptance of despair
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
express in words
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
plural of “say” — the chance to speak
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
a space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane)
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
a descent as through liquid (especially through water)
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
in a grave and sedate manner
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading I’m sure there’s no danger.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
in or at that place or location
From this reading _Miller_, solemnly: “No, he says there isn’t.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I’m sure there’s no danger.”
migratory
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading _Mrs. Crashaw_, sinking back on the seat with resignation: “Well, I don’t know what my niece will say.”
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading _Young Mr. Bemis_, gathering one of her wandering hands into his: “Don’t be frightened.
Chapter 2 of The Elevator by William Dean Howells holds 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 451 sentences of The Elevator, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Elevator by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 451 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 Elevator by William Dean Howells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Elevator section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Elevator 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 Elevator, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
