used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was a still, dark night.
Adrienne
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
AGATHA'S
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
barkingverbUS /ˈbɑːrkɪŋ/
-ing form of “bark” — speak in an unfriendly tone
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
ChâteaunounUS /ʃæˈtoʊ/
A large French country house or castle, often surrounded by expansive estates and private galleries.
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
clocksnounUS /klɑːks/
European weed naturalized in southwestern United States and Mexico having reddish decumbent stems with small fernlike leaves and small deep reddish-lavender flowers followed by slender fruits that stick straight up; often grown for forage
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading It was a still, dark night.
disturbverbUS /dɪˈstɜːrb/
move deeply
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
plural of “dog” — a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
hooting
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
imaginingverbUS /ˌɪˈmædʒənɪŋ/
-ing form of “imagine” — form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
intervalsnounUS /ˈɪntərvəlz/
plural of “interval” — a definite length of time marked off by two instants
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a still, dark night.
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 No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
the natural satellite of the Earth
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
plural of “movement” — a change of position that does not entail a change of location
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
not any; not one
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
noisesnounUS /ˈnɔɪzɪz/
plural of “noise” — sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
on one occasion
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
owlsnounUS /aʊlz/
plural of “owl” — nocturnal bird of prey with hawk-like beak and claws and large head with front-facing eyes
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
sound loudly and sonorously
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
stableadjectiveUS /ˈsteɪbəl/
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
not in physical motion
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
uncertainadjectiveUS /ənˈsɜːrtən/
lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
precisely as stated
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
a message informing of danger
From this reading AGATHA'S WARNING THAT night Adrienne could not sleep.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a still, dark night.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading No moon: owls were hooting at intervals—once she heard the dogs in the stable barking, but she knew that the movements of the cattle sometimes made them do that.
wishingnounUS /ˈwɪʃɪŋ/
a specific feeling of desire
From this reading She lay very still, not wishing to disturb her husband; and she took herself to task for imagining she heard strange noises round the old Château.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She heard the clocks striking two, then suddenly with no uncertain sound the church bell began to ring.
