Chapter 2 of The Rich Little Poor Boy is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Rich Little Poor Boy is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor. His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side. His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up. Then his lips began to move, noiselessly. "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
Chapter 2 of The Rich Little Poor Boy is here in full — 126 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
the protruding part of the lower jaw
From this reading “His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.”
become fractured; break or crack on the surface only
From this reading “PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.”
inflected form of “forsake” — leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading “His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.”
reduced in size as by squeezing together
From this reading “His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.”
the act of punishing
From this reading “PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.”
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading “"I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.”
one of the digits of the foot
From this reading “PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.”
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading “PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.”
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.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Then his lips began to move, noiselessly.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.
the protruding part of the lower jaw
From this reading His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.
become fractured; break or crack on the surface only
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
opinion or judgment
From this reading His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
inflected form of “forsake” — leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading Then his lips began to move, noiselessly.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Then his lips began to move, noiselessly.
reduced in size as by squeezing together
From this reading His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.
without a sound
From this reading Then his lips began to move, noiselessly.
give money, usually in exchange for goods or services
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
the act of punishing
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
a feeling of self-respect and personal worth
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I'll pay him up for that!" he promised.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then his lips began to move, noiselessly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
one of the digits of the foot
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
in disarray; extremely disorderly
From this reading His left hand forsook his tousled hair and fell to his side.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading His eyes narrowed, and his chin came up.
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading PRIDE AND PENALTY HIS toe stopped working across the crack in the floor.
Chapter 2 of The Rich Little Poor Boy by Eleanor Gates holds 126 sentences, grouped into 26 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 126 sentences of The Rich Little Poor Boy, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Rich Little Poor Boy by Eleanor Gates exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 126 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 Rich Little Poor Boy by Eleanor Gates on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9127 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24663 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24663, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1826 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Rich Little Poor Boy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Rich Little Poor Boy 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 Rich Little Poor Boy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
