Chapter 2 of The Statesmen Snowbound is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Statesmen Snowbound is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it. I must have been paralyzed. I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether. "So there I lay, stark with fear. But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
Chapter 2 of The Statesmen Snowbound is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 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.
inflected form of “blow” — exhale hard
From this reading “I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.”
processing that involves blowing a gas
From this reading “I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.”
not causing or capable of causing harm
From this reading “But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.”
an instinctive motive
From this reading “"My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.”
affected with paralysis
From this reading “I must have been paralyzed.”
sharp piercing cry
From this reading “"My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.”
devoid of any qualifications or disguise or adornment
From this reading “"So there I lay, stark with fear.”
someone who visits
From this reading “But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.”
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.
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I must have been paralyzed.
inflected form of “blow” — exhale hard
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
processing that involves blowing a gas
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading "So there I lay, stark with fear.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
not causing or capable of causing harm
From this reading But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I must have been paralyzed.
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
an instinctive motive
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
and nothing more
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "So there I lay, stark with fear.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading I must have been paralyzed.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
affected with paralysis
From this reading I must have been paralyzed.
precisely, exactly
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
sharp piercing cry
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "So there I lay, stark with fear.
devoid of any qualifications or disguise or adornment
From this reading "So there I lay, stark with fear.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading I blew first hot and then cold, and then stopped blowing altogether.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "So there I lay, stark with fear.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
precisely as stated
From this reading But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
someone who visits
From this reading But my visitor seemed to be very harmless.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "My first impulse was to shriek with affright; the impulse was all right, but I just couldn't do it.
Chapter 2 of The Statesmen Snowbound by Robert Fitzgerald holds 420 sentences, grouped into 84 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 420 sentences of The Statesmen Snowbound, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Statesmen Snowbound by Robert Fitzgerald exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 420 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Statesmen Snowbound by Robert Fitzgerald on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2456 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19966 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19966, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 204 minutes of reading across 492 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Statesmen Snowbound section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The Statesmen Snowbound 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 Statesmen Snowbound, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
