Chapter 17 of Two on a Tower is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Two on a Tower is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'I would rather not tell.' 'But--Well, never mind.' 'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you. There should be no secrets between us. He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
Chapter 17 of Two on a Tower is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading “There should be no secrets between us.”
-ing form of “marry” — take in marriage
From this reading “He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'”
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “'But--Well, never mind.'”
the condition of being essential or indispensable
From this reading “He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'”
on the contrary
From this reading “'I would rather not tell.'”
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading “There should be no secrets between us.”
plural of “urge” — an instinctive motive
From this reading “He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'”
an affirmative
From this reading “'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you.”
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.
later than; following
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading 'But--Well, never mind.'
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 'I would rather not tell.'
-ing form of “marry” — take in marriage
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading 'But--Well, never mind.'
the condition of being essential or indispensable
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading 'But--Well, never mind.'
not any; not one
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading 'I would rather not tell.'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
on the contrary
From this reading 'I would rather not tell.'
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you.
express in words
From this reading 'I would rather not tell.'
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
in or at that place or location
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
plural of “urge” — an instinctive motive
From this reading He urges upon me the necessity of marrying, day after day.'
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading There should be no secrets between us.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading 'But--Well, never mind.'
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading 'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading 'I would rather not tell.'
an affirmative
From this reading 'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'Yes, Swithin, I will tell you.
Chapter 17 of Two on a Tower by Thomas Hardy holds 176 sentences, grouped into 36 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 17 holds 176 sentences of Two on a Tower, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Two on a Tower by Thomas Hardy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 17 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 Two on a Tower by Thomas Hardy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5046 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3146 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3146, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 420 minutes of reading across 1010 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Two on a Tower section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Two on a Tower 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 Two on a Tower, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
