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Aunt Crete's Emancipation
Aunt Crete's Emancipation

Chapter VIII

Cover illustration for Aunt Crete's Emancipation
Context Illustration Reading 1/26 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.
She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.
At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.
He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.
Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.
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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.

Aunt Crete's Emancipation

Chapter VIII

Reading 1/26 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.
Line 2
She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.
Line 3
At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.
Line 4
He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.
Line 5
Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

Learner Dictionary

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

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.”

Cowed verb US /kaʊd/

made afraid or less confident

From this reading “At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.”

Found noun US /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.”

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.”

Morning noun US /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.”

Sure noun US /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.”

Thought noun US /thought/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.”

Waiting noun US /ˈwaiting/

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

From this reading “At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.”

All words in this reading · 79

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 At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

any

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

AUNT

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

bathing

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

better

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

blue

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

breakfast-time

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

cheer

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

coming

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

cowedverbUS /kaʊd/

made afraid or less confident

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

Crete

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

CRETE'S

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

dancing

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

delightful

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

dining-room

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

Donald

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

down

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

duties

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

firmly

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

foundnounUS /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

go

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

guessed

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

head

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

how

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

LUELLA

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

Marie

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

more

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

morningnounUS /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

nice

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

out

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

PARTNERSHIP

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

quietly

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

sad

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

sadly

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

said

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

ShepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

shook

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

sighed

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

sunshine

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

surenounUS /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

telling

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

Then

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

thoroughly

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.

thoughtnounUS /thought/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

tried

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

up

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

vanished

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

From this reading She vanished before Marie had thought of coming to her morning duties.

waiting

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

water

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

waves

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

From this reading He tried to cheer her up by telling her how nice a time they were to have in bathing that morning, for the water was sure to be delightful; but Aunt Crete shook her head sadly, and said she guessed she had better not go in bathing any more.

wistfully

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

From this reading Then she sighed, and looked wistfully out on the blue waves dancing in the sunshine.

woman

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

From this reading At breakfast-time Donald found a sad, cowed little woman waiting for him to go down to the dining-room.

work

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

From this reading AUNT CRETE’S PARTNERSHIP LUELLA did her work quietly, firmly, and thoroughly.