Chapter 2 of The Master Craftsman is here in full — 302 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Master Craftsman is here in full — 302 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
‘MARRY MONEY.’ ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious. ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand. Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’ I inclined my head.
Chapter 2 of The Master Craftsman is here in full — 302 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/60 · 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.
matters of personal concern
From this reading “Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’”
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading “‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.”
past form of “conduct” — direct the course of; manage or control
From this reading “Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’”
-ing form of “consult” — get or ask advice from
From this reading “Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’”
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading “I inclined my head.”
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading “‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.”
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading “‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.”
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading “‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.”
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.
in a lengthy or prolix manner
In this reading “‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.”
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.
matters of personal concern
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
(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 Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
past form of “conduct” — direct the course of; manage or control
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
-ing form of “consult” — get or ask advice from
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
Christian martyr; patron saint of England; hero of the legend of Saint George and the Dragon in which he slew a dragon and saved a princess (?-303)
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
the act of departing
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading I inclined my head.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I inclined my head.
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading I inclined my head.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
take in marriage
From this reading ‘MARRY MONEY.’
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading ‘MARRY MONEY.’
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I inclined my head.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
term of address for a man
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
be standing; be upright
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
an affirmative
From this reading ‘Yes, Sir George,’ said the lawyer, looking mighty serious.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading ‘We have at length ascertained how you stand.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Your father conducted--misconducted--his affairs without consulting us--and we knew nothing of what was going on--nothing at all.’
Chapter 2 of The Master Craftsman by Walter Besant holds 302 sentences, grouped into 61 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 302 sentences of The Master Craftsman, unabridged, divided into 61 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Master Craftsman by Walter Besant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 302 sentences, grouped into 61 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 61 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 61 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 Master Craftsman by Walter Besant 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 #?, unabridged. 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 Master Craftsman section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Master Craftsman, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
