Chapter 1 of The Second String is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Second String is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC. LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD. 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C. "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out." The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
Chapter 1 of The Second String is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
(slang) offensive term for a lesbian who is noticeably masculine
From this reading “The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.”
a county in southeastern England on the North Sea and the Thames estuary
From this reading “42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.”
an act that fails
From this reading “"There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."”
a hard coarse-grained siliceous sandstone
From this reading “"There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."”
someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous)
From this reading “The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.”
a pattern forming a unity within a larger structural whole
From this reading “42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.”
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading “AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.”
beat severely with a whip or rod
From this reading “AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.”
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.
make visible
In this reading “"There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
a degree on the centigrade scale of temperature
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD.
a female human offspring
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
increase twofold
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
(slang) offensive term for a lesbian who is noticeably masculine
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
a county in southeastern England on the North Sea and the Thames estuary
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD.
an act that fails
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
a social unit living together
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
plural of “go” — a time period for working (after which you will be relieved by someone else)
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
coins made of gold
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
a hard coarse-grained siliceous sandstone
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
a unit of radiation exposure; the dose of ionizing radiation that will produce 1 electrostatic unit of electricity in 1 cc of dry air
From this reading LONDON R. A. EVERETT & CO., LTD.
a course over which races are run
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
a statement that expresses a personal opinion or belief or adds information
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
term of address for a man
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous)
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
a pattern forming a unity within a larger structural whole
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
From this reading 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
beat severely with a whip or rod
From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE DOUBLE EVENT," "A RACECOURSE TRAGEDY," "THE GOLD WHIP," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The speaker was Sir Lester Dyke, and the remark was made to his daughter, Winifred.
but in spite of that
From this reading "There goes the failure of the family, yet I like him, there's real grit in him if it was brought out."
Chapter 1 of The Second String by Nat Gould holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 1 holds 422 sentences of The Second String, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Second String by Nat Gould exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 1 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 Second String by Nat Gould on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4131 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35782 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35782, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 344 minutes of reading across 827 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Second String section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The Second String 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 Second String, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
