Chapter 2 of Tolstoi for the Young 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 Tolstoi for the Young is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly. As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest. And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more. “It’s so dull for me,” he said. “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
Chapter 2 of Tolstoi for the Young 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.
a feeling of craving something
From this reading ““I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.””
(used in the plural) trousers ending above the knee
From this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
of textures that are rough to the touch or substances consisting of relatively large particles
From this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
the father of your spouse
From this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
a fabric woven with fibers from the flax plant
From this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
a country person
From this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
plural of “robe” — any loose flowing garment
From this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
fill by packing tightly
From this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
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.
hide aboard a ship or a plane to get free transportation
In this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
In this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
In this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
anew
In this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
leave
In this reading “As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.”
put clothing on one's body
In this reading “And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.”
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 As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
a feeling of craving something
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
to a severe or serious degree
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
(used in the plural) trousers ending above the knee
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
of textures that are rough to the touch or substances consisting of relatively large particles
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
having an (over)abundance of flesh
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
the father of your spouse
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
a fabric woven with fibers from the flax plant
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
be an inhabitant of or reside in
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
on one occasion
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
a country person
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
plural of “robe” — any loose flowing garment
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
a garment worn on the upper half of the body
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
a particular situation
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading “I’ve got fat, lost my appetite and can’t sleep.”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “It’s so dull for me,” he said.
in the near future
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
fill by packing tightly
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Ivan the Fool, too, did not live badly.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading As soon as his father-in-law was dead he took off his royal robes and gave them to his wife to stow away in a chest.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading And he put on his coarse linen shirt and breeches and peasant shoes and began to work once more.
Chapter 2 of Tolstoi for the Young by Leo, graf Tolstoy 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 Tolstoi for the Young, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Tolstoi for the Young by Leo, graf Tolstoy 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 Tolstoi for the Young by Leo, graf Tolstoy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2476 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #51708 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #51708, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 206 minutes of reading across 496 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tolstoi for the Young section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Tolstoi for the Young 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 Tolstoi for the Young, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
