Chapter 2 of The Poet Assassinated is here in full — 404 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 Poet Assassinated is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people. O Sodom! Sodom. O sterile love! FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
Chapter 2 of The Poet Assassinated is here in full — 404 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.
an old form of “do”, used with “thou”
From this reading “FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?”
completely lacking nobility in character or quality or purpose
From this reading “THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.”
a woman skilled in aiding the delivery of babies
From this reading “THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.”
any location known for vice and corruption
From this reading “O Sodom!”
incapable of reproducing
From this reading “O sterile love!”
one of three equal parts of a divisible whole
From this reading “THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.”
plural of “tool” — an implement used in the practice of a vocation
From this reading “THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.”
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading “FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?”
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.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
an old form of “do”, used with “thou”
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
completely lacking nobility in character or quality or purpose
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
a woman skilled in aiding the delivery of babies
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading O Sodom!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
any location known for vice and corruption
From this reading O Sodom!
express in speech
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
incapable of reproducing
From this reading O sterile love!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
one of three equal parts of a divisible whole
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
plural of “tool” — an implement used in the practice of a vocation
From this reading THIRD MIDWIFE They are the tools of the ignoble love of the people.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading FIRST MIDWIFE But we are women, why dost thou speak of Sodom?
Chapter 2 of The Poet Assassinated by Guillaume Apollinaire holds 404 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 404 sentences of The Poet Assassinated, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Poet Assassinated by Guillaume Apollinaire exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 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 Poet Assassinated by Guillaume Apollinaire on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1592 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60771 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #60771, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 132 minutes of reading across 319 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Poet Assassinated section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Poet Assassinated 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 Poet Assassinated, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
