Chapter 2 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly. "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!" "You see, I’ve got a conscience." "More noodle you! Go and sleep it off."
Chapter 2 of The Young O'Briens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading “"You see, I’ve got a conscience."”
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading “She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.”
absence of light or illumination
From this reading “She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.”
make reference to
From this reading “"Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"”
a ribbonlike strip of pasta
From this reading “"More noodle you!”
in a serious manner
From this reading “"Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"”
either of two offspring born at the same time from the same pregnancy
From this reading “"Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"”
past form of “wave” — signal with the hands or nod
From this reading “She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.”
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 “She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.”
be vigilant, be on the lookout or be careful
In this reading “She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.”
In this reading “"Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"”
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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading "You see, I’ve got a conscience."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Go and sleep it off."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading "You see, I’ve got a conscience."
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
in a forlorn manner
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Go and sleep it off."
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "You see, I’ve got a conscience."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You see, I’ve got a conscience."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
moving to the inside of something
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Go and sleep it off."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
make reference to
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "More noodle you!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
a ribbonlike strip of pasta
From this reading "More noodle you!
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Go and sleep it off."
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "You see, I’ve got a conscience."
in a serious manner
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading Go and sleep it off."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
either of two offspring born at the same time from the same pregnancy
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
past form of “wave” — signal with the hands or nod
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
in or at the place that
From this reading She looked out into the darkness where the curtain waved forlornly.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Seriously, Denis—" "Seriously, Nell, it’s in bed you ought to be, not to mention your poor twin!"
Chapter 2 of The Young O'Briens by Margaret Westrup holds 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 390 sentences of The Young O'Briens, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Young O'Briens by Margaret Westrup exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 Young O'Briens by Margaret Westrup on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8807 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45324 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45324, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1762 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Young O'Briens section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Young O'Briens 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 Young O'Briens, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
