the state of being absent
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
presently existing in fact and not merely potential or possible
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
Queen of England and Scotland and Ireland; daughter if James II and the last of the Stuart monarchs; in 1707 she was the last English ruler to exercise the royal veto over parliament (1665-1714)
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
Ariel
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
arrivingverbUS /ərˈaɪvɪŋ/
-ing form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Hugh passed Ariel and looked in at the library.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
of surpassing excellence
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
chandeliersnounUS /ˌʃændəˈlɪz/
plural of “chandelier” — branched lighting fixture; often ornate; hangs from the ceiling
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
complaintnounUS /kəmˈpleɪnt/
an often persistent bodily disorder or disease; a cause for complaining
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
feeling or showing worry or solicitude
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
disconcertionnoun
anxious embarrassment
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
Enderly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
a young female
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
GlennnounUS /ɡlen/
made the first orbital rocket-powered flight by a United States astronaut in 1962; later in United States Senate (1921-)
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
greetverbUS /ɡriːt/
express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
hadn't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
Hugh
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
impersonaladjectiveUS /ˌɪmˈpɜːrsənəl/
not relating to or responsive to individual persons
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
a vague idea in which some confidence is placed
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Hugh passed Ariel and looked in at the library.
a room where books are kept
From this reading Hugh passed Ariel and looked in at the library.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Hugh passed Ariel and looked in at the library.
engage in
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
very light colored; highly diluted with white
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Hugh passed Ariel and looked in at the library.
PrescottnounUS /ˈpreskɑːt/
a town in central Arizona
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
with considerable certainty; without much doubt
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
in or at or to some place
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
having a supporting base
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
stillnessnounUS /ˈstɪlnəs/
(poetic) tranquil silence
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
surveyedverbUS /sərˈveɪd/
past form of “survey” — consider in a comprehensive way
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
unoccupiedadjectiveUS /əˈnɑːkjəpaɪd/
not held or filled or in use
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He hadn’t asked his mother to be on hand to greet Ariel, and Anne was probably off somewhere with Glenn and Prescott Enderly.
accept gladly
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Hugh and Ariel, arriving, were met by the stillness.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He surveyed the unoccupied room with some disconcertion.
wordlessadjectiveUS /ˈwɜːrdləs/
expressed without speech
From this reading There was no actual cause for complaint, but he was concerned for the impression the absence of welcome might make on the girl standing there at his back, pale and wordless under the brilliant impersonal light of the hall chandeliers.
