used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But as she pondered, she discriminated.
awenounUS /ɑː/
an overwhelming feeling of wonder or admiration
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
past form of “believe” — accept as true; take to be true
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But as she pondered, she discriminated.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
discriminatedverbUS /dɪˈskrɪməneɪtɪd/
past form of “discriminate” — recognize or perceive the difference
From this reading But as she pondered, she discriminated.
endedadjectiveUS /ˈendəd/
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
your basis for belief or disbelief; knowledge on which to base belief
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
opinion or judgment
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
forgettingverbUS /fərˈɡetɪŋ/
inflected form of “forget” — dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
something acquired without compensation
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
groundlessadjectiveUS /ˈɡraʊndləs/
without a basis in reason or fact
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
hintedverbUS /ˈhɪntəd/
past form of “hint” — drop a hint; intimate by a hint
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
a single distinct event
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
set down according to a plan
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
musicaladjectiveUS /ˈmjuːzɪkəl/
characterized by or capable of producing music
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
narrativenounUS /ˈnærətɪv/
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
plural of “note” — a brief written record
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
overwhelmingadjectiveUS /ˌoʊvərˈwelmɪŋ/
so strong as to be irresistible
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
(American football) a play that involves one player throwing the ball to a teammate
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
ponderedverbUS /ˈpɑːndərd/
past form of “ponder” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading But as she pondered, she discriminated.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
ramblingadjectiveUS /ˈræmblɪŋ/
spreading out in different directions or distributed irregularly
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
past form of “regard” — deem to be
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But as she pondered, she discriminated.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Out of the long, rambling narrative she laid hold of one overwhelming incident, forgetting the rest: a passing stranger, hearing a few notes of his voice, had stopped to question him about it.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading To her this was the first outside evidence that her faith in his musical gift was not groundless.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
at the time that
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
in the company of; together with
From this reading When he had ended his story she regarded him across the table with something new in her eyes--something of awe.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading She had never hinted to him what she believed he would some day be.
