Chapter 2 of This Crowded Earth is here in full — 427 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of This Crowded Earth is here in full — 427 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He'd never broken himself of the habit. He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today. But there was no window any more. There was only a blank wall. And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
Chapter 2 of This Crowded Earth is here in full — 427 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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 a surface) not written or printed on
From this reading “There was only a blank wall.”
physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or split
From this reading “He'd never broken himself of the habit.”
make loud demands
From this reading “And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.”
plural of “crowd” — a large number of things or people considered together
From this reading “And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.”
an established custom
From this reading “He'd never broken himself of the habit.”
air pollution by a mixture of smoke and fog
From this reading “And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.”
the present time or age
From this reading “He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.”
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 “There was only a blank wall.”
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 There was only a blank wall.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading But there was no window any more.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
(of a surface) not written or printed on
From this reading There was only a blank wall.
physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or split
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But there was no window any more.
make loud demands
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
plural of “crowd” — a large number of things or people considered together
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
an established custom
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
and nothing more
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
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 He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading But there was no window any more.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
not any; not one
From this reading But there was no window any more.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
and nothing more
From this reading There was only a blank wall.
air pollution by a mixture of smoke and fog
From this reading And beyond it, the smog and the clamor and the crowds.
not in physical motion
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He'd never broken himself of the habit.
in or at that place or location
From this reading But there was no window any more.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
the present time or age
From this reading He still looked to the left every morning, just as he had today.
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 There was only a blank wall.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But there was no window any more.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading But there was no window any more.
Chapter 2 of This Crowded Earth by Robert Bloch holds 427 sentences, grouped into 86 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 427 sentences of This Crowded Earth, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of This Crowded Earth by Robert Bloch exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 427 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 This Crowded Earth by Robert Bloch on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3470 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25776 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25776, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 289 minutes of reading across 694 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through This Crowded Earth section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of This Crowded Earth 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 This Crowded Earth, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
