Chapter 2 of Unfinished Portraits is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Unfinished Portraits is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The old man chuckled. "Ja, ja!" He limped from the room. Presently he returned with a pewter mug. It was foaming at the top.
Chapter 2 of Unfinished Portraits is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
past form of “chuckle” — laugh quietly or with restraint
From this reading “The old man chuckled.”
emitting or filled with bubbles as from carbonation or fermentation
From this reading “It was foaming at the top.”
past form of “limp” — walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading “He limped from the room.”
the quantity that can be held in a mug
From this reading “Presently he returned with a pewter mug.”
any of various alloys of tin with small amounts of other metals (especially lead)
From this reading “Presently he returned with a pewter mug.”
in the near future
From this reading “Presently he returned with a pewter mug.”
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading “Presently he returned with a pewter mug.”
the upper part of anything
From this reading “It was foaming at the top.”
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.
a man who is very old
In this reading “The old man chuckled.”
In this reading “It was foaming at the top.”
In this reading “Presently he returned with a pewter mug.”
In this reading “He limped from the room.”
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 Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It was foaming at the top.
past form of “chuckle” — laugh quietly or with restraint
From this reading The old man chuckled.
emitting or filled with bubbles as from carbonation or fermentation
From this reading It was foaming at the top.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading He limped from the room.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He limped from the room.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was foaming at the top.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Ja, ja!"
past form of “limp” — walk impeded by some physical limitation or injury
From this reading He limped from the room.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The old man chuckled.
the quantity that can be held in a mug
From this reading Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The old man chuckled.
any of various alloys of tin with small amounts of other metals (especially lead)
From this reading Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
in the near future
From this reading Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading He limped from the room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The old man chuckled.
the upper part of anything
From this reading It was foaming at the top.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was foaming at the top.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Presently he returned with a pewter mug.
Chapter 2 of Unfinished Portraits by Jennette Lee holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 416 sentences of Unfinished Portraits, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Unfinished Portraits by Jennette Lee exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Unfinished Portraits by Jennette Lee on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1638 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30562 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30562, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 136 minutes of reading across 328 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Unfinished Portraits section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of Unfinished Portraits 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 Unfinished Portraits, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
