Chapter 2 of Uncanny Tales is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Uncanny Tales is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I knelt by his side and sobbed. It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing. I knew it was best for him. He looked at me very affectionately. "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
Chapter 2 of Uncanny Tales is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
with affection
From this reading “He looked at me very affectionately.”
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading “It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.”
come to pass
From this reading “"I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.”
inflected form of “kneel” — rest one's weight on one's knees
From this reading “I knelt by his side and sobbed.”
(American football) a play that involves one player throwing the ball to a teammate
From this reading “It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.”
inflected form of “sob” — weep convulsively
From this reading “I knelt by his side and sobbed.”
feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone
From this reading “"I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.”
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading “It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.”
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.
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “He looked at me very affectionately.”
In this reading “I knelt by his side and sobbed.”
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.
with affection
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading I knew it was best for him.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I knew it was best for him.
come to pass
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I knew it was best for him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
inflected form of “kneel” — rest one's weight on one's knees
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I knew it was best for him.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
(American football) a play that involves one player throwing the ball to a teammate
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
inflected form of “sob” — weep convulsively
From this reading I knelt by his side and sobbed.
feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
precisely as stated
From this reading He looked at me very affectionately.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I knew it was best for him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
but in spite of that
From this reading It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, I don't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said.
Chapter 2 of Uncanny Tales by Various holds 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 432 sentences of Uncanny Tales, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Uncanny Tales by Various exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 Uncanny Tales by Various on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2177 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26606 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26606, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 181 minutes of reading across 436 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Uncanny Tales section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Uncanny Tales 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 Uncanny Tales, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
