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Auld Licht Idyls
Auld Licht Idyls

Chapter VIII

Cover illustration for Auld Licht Idyls
Context Illustration Reading 1/13 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.
When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.
I would be eight or ten year old at that time.
James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.
We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.
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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.

Auld Licht Idyls

Chapter VIII

Reading 1/13 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.
Line 2
When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.
Line 3
I would be eight or ten year old at that time.
Line 4
James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.
Line 5
We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

Learner Dictionary

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

Morning noun US /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

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

From this reading “I would be eight or ten year old at that time.”

All words in this reading · 50

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

1832

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

arrangement

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

back

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

bonfire

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

building

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

clothes

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

comes

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

DAVIT

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

From this reading DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.

door

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

eight

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

election-day

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

five

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

go

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

hill

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

James

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

LUNAN'S

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

From this reading DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

morningnounUS /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

now

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

o'clock

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

old

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

POLITICAL

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

From this reading DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.

REMINISCENCES

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

From this reading DAVIT LUNAN'S POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.

round

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

Sabbath

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

see

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

Strachan

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

takes

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

ten

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

up

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

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading James Strachan was at the door by five o'clock in the morning in his Sabbath clothes, by arrangement.

WepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading We was to go up to the hill to see them building the bonfire.

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading When an election-day comes round now, it takes me back to the time of 1832.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.

year

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

From this reading I would be eight or ten year old at that time.