Chapter 2 of The Elixir of Life is here in full — 196 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 Elixir of Life is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily. Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark. The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent. It was an intelligent movement. If a voice had cried "Yes!"
Chapter 2 of The Elixir of Life is here in full — 196 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.
quickly and without warning
From this reading “The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.”
agreement with a statement or proposal to do something
From this reading “The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.”
showing the cunning or ingenuity or wickedness typical of a devil
From this reading “Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.”
either of two folds of skin that can be moved to cover or open the eye
From this reading “The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.”
having the capacity for thought and reason especially to a high degree
From this reading “It was an intelligent movement.”
against your will
From this reading “"He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.”
softly bright or radiant
From this reading “Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.”
a momentary flash of light
From this reading “Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.”
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 eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
quickly and without warning
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
anew
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading It was an intelligent movement.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
agreement with a statement or proposal to do something
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
showing the cunning or ingenuity or wickedness typical of a devil
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
either of two folds of skin that can be moved to cover or open the eye
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
ten 10s
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If a voice had cried "Yes!"
a power to affect persons or events especially power based on prestige etc
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
having the capacity for thought and reason especially to a high degree
From this reading It was an intelligent movement.
against your will
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
past form of “live” — be an inhabitant of or reside in
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
softly bright or radiant
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
a change of position that does not entail a change of location
From this reading It was an intelligent movement.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
a perceptible indication of something not immediately apparent (as a visible clue that something has happened)
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
a momentary flash of light
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Some diabolical influence had drawn him to his father, and again he gazed at that luminous spark.
precisely as stated
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading If a voice had cried "Yes!"
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
possessive form of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The eyelid closed and opened again abruptly; it was like a woman's sign of assent.
a late time of life
From this reading "He might very likely have lived another hundred years!" he cried involuntarily.
an affirmative
From this reading If a voice had cried "Yes!"
Chapter 2 of The Elixir of Life by Honoré de Balzac holds 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 196 sentences of The Elixir of Life, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Elixir of Life by Honoré de Balzac exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 196 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 Elixir of Life by Honoré de Balzac on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 401 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1215 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1215, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 33 minutes of reading across 81 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Elixir of Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The Elixir of Life 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 Elixir of Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
