Chapter VI

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

later than; following

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

in or to or toward a former location

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

plural of “bee” — any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

actively or fully engaged or occupied

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

-ing form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

plural of “chance” — a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

the social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

suitable to your needs

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

traveling across

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

any wingless bloodsucking parasitic insect noted for ability to leap

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

plural of “flea” — any wingless bloodsucking parasitic insect noted for ability to leap

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

set up or found

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

that which is pleasing or valuable or useful

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

immediately past

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

past form of “live” — be an inhabitant of or reside in

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

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 It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

used to say something is possible, or to give permission

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

the message that is intended or expressed or signified

From this reading “Meaning?”

make reference to

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

the number that is represented as a one followed by 6 zeros

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

not any; not one

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

the optimistic feeling that all is going to turn out well

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

(American football) a play that involves one player throwing the ball to a teammate

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

a full supply

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

the length of a line segment between the center and circumference of a circle or sphere

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

interpret something that is written or printed

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

past form of “recall” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

unusual or striking

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

delivered from danger

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

the world's largest desert (3,500,000 square miles) in northern Africa

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

a loose material consisting of grains of rock or coral

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

used to say what is right, expected, or advisable

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

in or at or to some place

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

express a supposition

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

in or at that place or location

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

(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 “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

used to ask for information about something

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

in or at the place that

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

inside; before a period of time has passed

From this reading It had lived on in the sand, goodness knows how long, on the chance of some animal passing within the radius of a leap and so carrying it back to a congenial and not too rasorial a civilisation.

exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “The thought that I had was that there are more busy bees at work than one would suppose; and the mention of the desert recalled to my mind what I read somewhere of the remarkable optimism of a flea which a man found on his foot after crossing the desert of the Sahara.

but in spite of that

From this reading How many thousand million chances to one there were that it should not be rescued; yet its chance came at last.”

belonging to the person or people being spoken to

From this reading “Well, my flea is your bee, and where there are no bees there may be plenty of fleas.”