Chapter 2 of The Great Accident 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 Great Accident is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston. Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one. Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known. He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace. But his business under these heads is very small.
Chapter 2 of The Great Accident 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.
a Hebrew shepherd and minor prophet
From this reading “AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.”
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading “He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.”
(United Kingdom) a region created by territorial division for the purpose of local government
From this reading “Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.”
plural of “head” — the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading “But his business under these heads is very small.”
the quality of being just or fair
From this reading “He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.”
someone legally empowered to witness signatures and certify a document's validity and to take depositions
From this reading “He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.”
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading “AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.”
people in general considered as a whole
From this reading “AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
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 AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
a Hebrew shepherd and minor prophet
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
(United Kingdom) a region created by territorial division for the purpose of local government
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
a diagram or picture illustrating textual material
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
plural of “head” — the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
the quality of being just or fair
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
someone legally empowered to witness signatures and certify a document's validity and to take depositions
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
and nothing more
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
the state prevailing during the absence of war
From this reading He is an attorney, a notary, a justice of the peace.
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
people in general considered as a whole
From this reading AMOS CARETALL Peter Gergue is a public figure in Hardiston.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading Not only in Hardiston town, but in Hardiston County is Gergue known.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
precisely as stated
From this reading But his business under these heads is very small.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Every one knows him, and--what is more to the point--he knows every one.
Chapter 2 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams 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 Great Accident, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams 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 Great Accident by Ben Ames Williams on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 12440 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64002 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64002, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2488 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Great Accident section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The Great Accident 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 Great Accident, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
