Chapter 2 of Under False Pretences: A Novel is here in full — 435 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 Under False Pretences: A Novel is here in full — 435 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BY THE LOCH. "It is you who have been the thief, then?" The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt. The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply. "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
Chapter 2 of Under False Pretences: A Novel is here in full — 435 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
From this reading “The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.”
bringing or deserving severe rebuke or censure
From this reading “The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.”
directed downward
From this reading “The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.”
a long narrow inlet of the sea in Scotland (especially when it is nearly landlocked)
From this reading “BY THE LOCH.”
a criminal who takes property belonging to someone else with the intention of keeping it or selling it
From this reading “"It is you who have been the thief, then?"”
plural of “tone” — the quality of a person's voice
From this reading “The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.”
communicated in words
From this reading “The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.”
wreaking or capable of wreaking complete destruction
From this reading “The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.”
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 “The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.”
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 The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
react verbally
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
earlier than; in front of
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading BY THE LOCH.
lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
bringing or deserving severe rebuke or censure
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
directed downward
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
plural of “finger” — any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
set up or found
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
in an imperative and commanding manner
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
a long narrow inlet of the sea in Scotland (especially when it is nearly landlocked)
From this reading BY THE LOCH.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Answer me," said Richard Luttrell, imperatively.
having a supporting base
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading BY THE LOCH.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
a criminal who takes property belonging to someone else with the intention of keeping it or selling it
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
plural of “tone” — the quality of a person's voice
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
communicated in words
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
which person or people
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
wreaking or capable of wreaking complete destruction
From this reading The question was uttered in tones of withering contempt.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading The criminal, standing before his judge with downcast face and nervously-twitching fingers, found not a word to reply.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "It is you who have been the thief, then?"
Chapter 2 of Under False Pretences: A Novel by Adeline Sergeant holds 435 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 435 sentences of Under False Pretences: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Under False Pretences: A Novel by Adeline Sergeant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 435 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.
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Yes. All 12438 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31375 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31375, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2488 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Under False Pretences: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Under False Pretences: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
