Chapter 2 of The Shape of Fear is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Shape of Fear is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Of me?” “We wondered what it meant. No one knew you were lovers.” “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity. At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
Chapter 2 of The Shape of Fear is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
water frozen in the solid state
From this reading “At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.”
plural of “lover” — a person who loves someone or is loved by someone
From this reading “No one knew you were lovers.””
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading ““We wondered what it meant.”
a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others
From this reading ““I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.”
a gap between cloud masses
From this reading “At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.”
the land along the edge of a body of water
From this reading “At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.”
an increase in width
From this reading “At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.”
past form of “wonder” — have a wish or desire to know something
From this reading ““We wondered what it meant.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
water frozen in the solid state
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “We wondered what it meant.
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 No one knew you were lovers.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
the superlative of “little” that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by “the”; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
plural of “lover” — a person who loves someone or is loved by someone
From this reading No one knew you were lovers.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Of me?”
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “We wondered what it meant.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
not any; not one
From this reading No one knew you were lovers.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Of me?”
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading No one knew you were lovers.”
a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
a gap between cloud masses
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
the land along the edge of a body of water
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I didn't know it myself; more's the pity.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “We wondered what it meant.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading No one knew you were lovers.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “We wondered what it meant.
an increase in width
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure
From this reading At least, I didn't know--” “She said you were on the ice, and that you didn't know about the big breaking-up, and she cried to us that the wind was off shore and the rift widening.
past form of “wonder” — have a wish or desire to know something
From this reading “We wondered what it meant.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading No one knew you were lovers.”
Chapter 2 of The Shape of Fear by Elia Wilkinson Peattie holds 181 sentences, grouped into 37 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 181 sentences of The Shape of Fear, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Shape of Fear by Elia Wilkinson Peattie exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 Shape of Fear by Elia Wilkinson Peattie on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1256 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1876 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1876, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 104 minutes of reading across 252 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Shape of Fear section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Shape of Fear 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 Shape of Fear, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
