Chapter 2 of The Raid on the Termites is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Raid on the Termites is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim. Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend. Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe. Dennis knew the symptoms. Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
Chapter 2 of The Raid on the Termites is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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 man who has never been married
From this reading “Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.”
plural of “characteristic” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading “Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.”
continuing forever or indefinitely
From this reading “Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.”
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading “Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.”
a written agreement between two states or sovereigns
blowing tobacco smoke out into the air
From this reading “Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.”
in a restless manner
From this reading “Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.”
plural of “symptom” — (medicine) any sensation or change in bodily function that is experienced by a patient and is associated with a particular disease
From this reading “Dennis knew the symptoms.”
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 Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
a suite of rooms usually on one floor of an apartment house
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
a man who has never been married
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
plural of “characteristic” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
continuing forever or indefinitely
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
the act of departing
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
with spasms
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
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 Dennis knew the symptoms.
the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
above and across; more than
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
(music) the speed at which a composition is to be played
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
a written agreement between two states or sovereigns
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
a tube with a small bowl at one end; used for smoking tobacco
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
blowing tobacco smoke out into the air
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
in a quizzical and questioning manner
From this reading Dennis looked quizzically at his big friend.
past form of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
in a restless manner
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
plural of “symptom” — (medicine) any sensation or change in bodily function that is experienced by a patient and is associated with a particular disease
From this reading Dennis knew the symptoms.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Jim was pacing restlessly up and down the living room of the bachelor apartment, puffing jerkily at his eternal pipe.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading _The Pact_ "What are we going to do to-night?" asked Jim.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Though he hadn't seen Jim for over a year, he remembered his characteristics well enough.
Chapter 2 of The Raid on the Termites by Paul Ernst holds 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 201 sentences of The Raid on the Termites, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Raid on the Termites by Paul Ernst exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 Raid on the Termites by Paul Ernst on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1616 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #27248 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #27248, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 134 minutes of reading across 324 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Raid on the Termites section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of The Raid on the Termites 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 Raid on the Termites, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
