used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
the quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
in the past
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
alertadjectiveUS /əˈlɜːrt/
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
a permanent organization of the military land forces of a nation or state
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
awaitverbUS /əˈweɪt/
look forward to the probable occurrence of
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
commandingadjectiveUS /kəˈmændɪŋ/
used of a height or viewpoint
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
recognizable; marked
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
separated in space or coming from or going to a distance
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
compelled forcibly by an outside agency
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
encounterverbUS /ɪnˈkaʊntər/
come together
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
plural of “enemy” — an opposing military force
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
an opposing military force
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
plural of “event” — something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
to or at a greater extent or degree or a more advanced stage (“further” is used more often than “farther” in this abstract sense)
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
past form of “gain” — obtain
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
a person of German nationality
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
GermansnounUS /ˈdʒɜːrmənz/
plural of “german” — a person of German nationality
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
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 The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
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 His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
madnessnounUS /ˈmædnəs/
obsolete terms for legal insanity
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
a particular point in time
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
in motion
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
held or filled or in use
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
the act of pursuing in an effort to overtake or capture
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
rearguardnoun
a detachment assigned to protect the rear of a (retreating) military body
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
free from danger or the risk of harm
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
a deliberate discourteous act (usually as an expression of anger or disapproval)
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
takenadjectiveUS /ˈteɪkən/
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
the act of someone who picks up or takes something
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
in the direction of
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
trenchesnounUS /ˈtrentʃɪz/
plural of “trench” — a ditch dug as a fortification having a parapet of the excavated earth
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The enemy was moving away towards a distant hill, but a huge rearguard was on the alert.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The English army had, for the time being, occupied the trenches from which they had driven the Germans, and for a moment they were safe.
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading To Bob, the whole day seemed like a dream.
in the company of; together with
From this reading His encounter with the German private was like the memory of some event which had taken place long, long ago.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading The commanding officer knew that although a slight advantage had been gained, pursuit would be madness, so, taking advantage of the enemies' trenches, they decided to await further events.
