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Arethusa
Arethusa

Chapter IV

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Context Illustration Reading 1/56 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.
She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.
While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.
It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!
Kyrie eleeison!
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Arethusa

Chapter IV

Reading 1/56 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.
Line 2
She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.
Line 3
While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.
Line 4
It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!
Line 5
Kyrie eleeison!

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Across preposition US /əˈkrɔːs/

from one side of something to the other

From this reading “She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.”

Drew noun US /drew/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.”

Hear noun US /hear/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.”

Herself pronoun US /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading “While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!”

Quite noun US /quite/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.”

Sharply noun US /ˈsharply/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!”

Something pronoun US /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading “When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.”

Thin adjective US /θɪn/

Having little thickness or extent.

From this reading “It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!”

Through noun US /ˈthrough/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.”

Under preposition US /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading “When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.”

While conjunction US /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading “While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.”

All words in this reading · 94

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

acrossprepositionUS /əˈkrɔːs/

from one side of something to the other

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

also

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

Anastasia

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

away

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

back

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

bar

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

barely

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

bits

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

came

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

cord

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

crazy

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

dark

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

doing

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

door

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

down

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

drewnounUS /drew/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

dying

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

eleeison

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

From this reading Kyrie eleeison!

farther

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

fastened

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

food

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

hearnounUS /hear/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

hidden

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

hinges

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

holes

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

Holy

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

hung

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

hunger

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

hungry

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

inside

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

knotted

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

Kyrie

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

From this reading Kyrie eleeison!

lane

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

litany

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

lived

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

lunatic

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

mad

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

Mother

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

nasal

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

old

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

paralytic

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

put

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

quitenounUS /quite/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

rain-bleached

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

rising

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

rotten

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

send

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

sharplynounUS /ˈsharply/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

shawl

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

ShepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

shut

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

shutters

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

singing

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

somethingpronounUS /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

sort

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

starving

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

tattered

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

then

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

thinadjectiveUS /θɪn/

Having little thickness or extent.

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

throughnounUS /ˈthrough/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

tuneless

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

up

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

uspronounUS /ʌs/

the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

voice

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

wail

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

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

wepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading It was the thin nasal voice of a starving lunatic, rising sharply and then dying away in a tuneless wail:-- Holy Mother, send us a little food, for we are hungry!

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

WhileconjunctionUS /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading While she was doing this she could hear Anastasia, the crazy paralytic who lived farther down the lane, singing a sort of mad litany of hunger to herself in the dark.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

woman

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

wood

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.

wooden

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

From this reading She also shut the door and put up a wooden bar across it.

Zoë

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

From this reading When it was quite dark the old woman came back with something hidden under her tattered shawl, and Zoë drew the rotten shutters that barely hung by the hinges and fastened them inside with bits of rain-bleached cord that were knotted through holes in the wood.