Chapter 2 of The tale of Daddy Longlegs is here in full — 517 sentences across 104 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The tale of Daddy Longlegs is here in full — 517 sentences across 104 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Is it far to the road?" Daddy asked him. "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him. "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field." "Ebenezer!
Chapter 2 of The tale of Daddy Longlegs is here in full — 517 sentences across 104 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/103 · 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.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “Daddy asked him.”
a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
From this reading “"If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."”
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading “"Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.”
plural of “pass” — (baseball) an advance to first base by a batter who receives four balls
From this reading “"If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."”
reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading “"If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."”
of hair color; pale yellowish to yellowish brown
From this reading “"Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.”
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “"If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “"If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."”
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.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Daddy asked him.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading Daddy asked him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Daddy asked him.
a condition of urgency making it necessary to hurry
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
plural of “pass” — (baseball) an advance to first base by a batter who receives four balls
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
an open way (generally public) for travel or transportation
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
of hair color; pale yellowish to yellowish brown
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading "If you start now you surely ought to be able to reach the road by the time old Ebenezer passes this field."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Is it far to the road?"
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Not if you hurry," Sandy told him.
Chapter 2 of The tale of Daddy Longlegs by Arthur Scott Bailey holds 517 sentences, grouped into 104 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 517 sentences of The tale of Daddy Longlegs, unabridged, divided into 104 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The tale of Daddy Longlegs by Arthur Scott Bailey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 517 sentences, grouped into 104 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 104 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 104 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 tale of Daddy Longlegs by Arthur Scott Bailey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1051 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21426 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21426, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 87 minutes of reading across 211 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The tale of Daddy Longlegs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The tale of Daddy Longlegs 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 tale of Daddy Longlegs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
