Chapter 2 of The Plain Man and His Wife is here in full — 562 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Plain Man and His Wife is here in full — 562 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
No more was said on the subject. The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms. "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling. "Nothing to be done?" I inquired.
Chapter 2 of The Plain Man and His Wife is here in full — 562 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/112 · 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.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading “"It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.”
entrusted with private information and the confidence of another
From this reading “The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.”
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading “"It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.”
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “I inquired.”
on the contrary
From this reading “The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.”
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading “"It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.”
the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
From this reading “No more was said on the subject.”
status with respect to the relations between people or groups
From this reading “The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.”
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 "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Nothing to be done?"
entrusted with private information and the confidence of another
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading "Nothing to be done?"
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading I inquired.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
not any; not one
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Nothing to be done?"
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
on the contrary
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
a painful emotion resulting from an awareness of inadequacy or guilt
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
status with respect to the relations between people or groups
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading No more was said on the subject.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "It is a shame, isn't it?" she said to me afterwards, with feeling.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The young woman and I are on rather confidential terms.
Chapter 2 of The Plain Man and His Wife by Arnold Bennett holds 562 sentences, grouped into 113 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 562 sentences of The Plain Man and His Wife, unabridged, divided into 113 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Plain Man and His Wife by Arnold Bennett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 562 sentences, grouped into 113 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 113 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 113 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 Plain Man and His Wife by Arnold Bennett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1114 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #13449 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #13449, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 92 minutes of reading across 223 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Plain Man and His Wife section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The Plain Man and His Wife 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 Plain Man and His Wife, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
