Chapter 2 of The Way Back is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Way Back is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion. Further observations were interrupted. The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern. One little man left the party. Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
Chapter 2 of The Way Back is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
From this reading “Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.”
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading “The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.”
something that interests you because it is important or affects you
From this reading “The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.”
lively and spirited
From this reading “Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.”
the vertical dimension of extension; distance from the base of something to the top
From this reading “Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.”
plural of “mask” — a covering to disguise or conceal the face
From this reading “The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.”
plural of “observation” — the act of making and recording a measurement
From this reading “Further observations were interrupted.”
the quotient obtained when the magnitude of a part is divided by the magnitude of the whole
From this reading “Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.”
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.
In this reading “The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.”
In this reading “Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.”
In this reading “Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.”
In this reading “The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.”
In this reading “One little man left the party.”
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 Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
(used of soaps or cleaning agents) having a substance (an abrasive or filler) added to increase effectiveness
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
something that interests you because it is important or affects you
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
lively and spirited
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
a line leading to a place or point
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
to or at a greater extent or degree or a more advanced stage (“further” is used more often than “farther” in this abstract sense)
From this reading Further observations were interrupted.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
the vertical dimension of extension; distance from the base of something to the top
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
discontinued temporarily
From this reading Further observations were interrupted.
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 One little man left the party.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading One little man left the party.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading One little man left the party.
plural of “mask” — a covering to disguise or conceal the face
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
the force of workers available
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
plural of “observation” — the act of making and recording a measurement
From this reading Further observations were interrupted.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One little man left the party.
an organization to gain political power
From this reading One little man left the party.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
the quotient obtained when the magnitude of a part is divided by the magnitude of the whole
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
Identical; not different.
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading The people about him suddenly assumed masks of great concern.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading Through one of the windows he could be seen dashing off in the direction of the great wall.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading Both men and women were approximately the same height--about five feet--but built entirely in proportion.
Chapter 2 of The Way Back by Sam Moskowitz holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 411 sentences of The Way Back, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Way Back by Sam Moskowitz exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 Way Back by Sam Moskowitz on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 831 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64818 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64818, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 69 minutes of reading across 167 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Way Back section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The Way Back 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 Way Back, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
