Chapter 2 of The Queen Against Owen is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Queen Against Owen is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION. 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff. The great murder case.' Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words. Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
Chapter 2 of The Queen Against Owen is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/47 · 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.
English architect (1723-1796)
From this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading “Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.”
a fixed charge for a privilege or for professional services
From this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
a town in central Arizona
From this reading “Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.”
the institution and conduct of legal proceedings against a defendant for criminal behavior
From this reading “THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.”
no longer active in your work or profession
From this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
without speaking
From this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
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 this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
In this reading “THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.”
In this reading “The great murder case.'”
seek information from
In this reading “Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.”
to cause inconvenience or discomfort to
In this reading “Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.”
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 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
the county courts of England (replaced in 1971 by Crown courts)
From this reading 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
of short duration or distance
From this reading THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.
an occurrence of something
From this reading The great murder case.'
English architect (1723-1796)
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
a fixed charge for a privilege or for professional services
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The great murder case.'
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
engage in
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
kill intentionally and with premeditation
From this reading The great murder case.'
a brief written record
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
a town in central Arizona
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
the institution and conduct of legal proceedings against a defendant for criminal behavior
From this reading THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
no longer active in your work or profession
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
without speaking
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
term of address for a man
From this reading 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BRIEF FOR THE PROSECUTION.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
during the time that
From this reading Then he silently put out his hand and took the brief, while the clerk retired into the outer room of the chambers to make a note of the fee.
the words that are spoken
From this reading Mr. Prescott looked up as his clerk entered, and heard these words.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'A brief for you, sir, for the assizes at Abertaff.
Chapter 2 of The Queen Against Owen by Allen Upward holds 237 sentences, grouped into 48 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 237 sentences of The Queen Against Owen, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Queen Against Owen by Allen Upward exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 237 sentences, grouped into 48 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 48 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 48 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 Queen Against Owen by Allen Upward on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2755 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30910 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30910, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 229 minutes of reading across 551 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Queen Against Owen section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Queen Against Owen 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 Queen Against Owen, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
