Chapter 2 of The World That Couldn't Be is here in full — 565 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The World That Couldn't Be is here in full — 565 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge. The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him. "It crossed," said Sipar. "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum." "Are you sure?
Chapter 2 of The World That Couldn't Be is here in full — 565 sentences across 113 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/113 · 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.
placed crosswise
From this reading “"It crossed," said Sipar.”
a form of energy that is transferred by a difference in temperature
From this reading “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
past form of “hunker” — sit on one's heels
From this reading “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
characteristic of or existing by virtue of geographic origin
From this reading “The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.”
shine with a weak or fitful light
From this reading “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
inflected form of “swim” — travel through water
From this reading “"It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."”
inflected form of “trot” — run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading “The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.”
possessive form of “water” — binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
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 “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
In this reading “The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.”
In this reading “He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.”
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.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Are you sure?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
next to; at the side of
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
placed crosswise
From this reading "It crossed," said Sipar.
the boundary of a surface
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
a form of energy that is transferred by a difference in temperature
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
past form of “hunker” — sit on one's heels
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It crossed," said Sipar.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
characteristic of or existing by virtue of geographic origin
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
advancing or becoming higher or greater in degree or value or status
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "It crossed," said Sipar.
shine with a weak or fitful light
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "Are you sure?
inflected form of “swim” — travel through water
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
inflected form of “trot” — run at a moderately swift pace
From this reading The native rose to its feet and trotted back to him.
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading "It walked out as far as it could go and it must have swum."
the act of observing; taking a patient look
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
possessive form of “water” — binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading He squinted his eyes against the heat shimmer rising from the river, watching Sipar hunkered beside the water's edge.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Are you sure?
Chapter 2 of The World That Couldn't Be by Clifford D. Simak holds 565 sentences, grouped into 113 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 565 sentences of The World That Couldn't Be, unabridged, divided into 113 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The World That Couldn't Be by Clifford D. Simak exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 565 sentences, grouped into 113 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 113 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 113 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 World That Couldn't Be by Clifford D. Simak on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1137 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #32026 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #32026, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 94 minutes of reading across 228 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The World That Couldn't Be section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The World That Couldn't Be 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 World That Couldn't Be, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
