adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
airnounUS /er/
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
alsoadverbUS /ˈɔːlsoʊ/
in addition
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
amusedadjectiveUS /əˈmjuːzd/
pleasantly occupied
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
andeterminerUS /æn/
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
aptadjectiveUS /æpt/
(usually followed by “to”) naturally disposed toward
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
aroseverbUS /ərˈoʊz/
inflected form of “arise” — come into existence; take on form or shape
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
AuntnounUS /ænt/
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
beauxiliary verbUS /biː/
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
butconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
canmodal verbUS /kæn/
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
dealverbUS /diːl/
act on verbally or in some form of artistic expression
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
earshotnounUS /ˈɪrʃɑːt/
the range within which a voice can be heard
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
feltverbUS /felt/
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
gladadjectiveUS /ɡlæd/
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
goodadjectiveUS /ɡʊd/
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
happinessnounUS /ˈhæpinəs/
state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
homenounUS /hoʊm/
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
humournounUS /ˈhjuːmər/
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
hurriedadjectiveUS /ˈhɜːrid/
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
IpronounUS /aɪ/
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
itpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
lateadjectiveUS /leɪt/
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
laughnounUS /læf/
the sound of laughing
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
lovedadjectiveUS /lʌvd/
held dear
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
maymodal verbUS /meɪ/
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
middle-agedadjectiveUS /ˈmɪdəleɪɡd/
being roughly between 45 and 65 years old
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
mirth-provoking
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
new-blossoming
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We loved Aunt Olivia and were glad for her late, new-blossoming happiness; but we felt amused over it also.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
Olivia
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
onlookersnounUS /ˈɔːnlʊkərz/
plural of “onlooker” — someone who looks on
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
OnlyadverbUS /ˈoʊnli/
and nothing more
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
outadjectiveUS /aʊt/
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/
above and across; more than
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
Peggy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
possessverbUS /pəˈzes/
have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
promisedverbUS /ˈprɑːməst/
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
reliefnounUS /rɪˈliːf/
the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
romancesnounUS /roʊˈmænsɪz/
plural of “romance” — a relationship between two lovers
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
safelyadverbUS /ˈseɪfli/
with safety; in a safe manner
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
sentimentaladjectiveUS /ˌsentəˈmentəl/
given to or marked by sentiment or sentimentality
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
stoppingnounUS /ˈstɑːpɪŋ/
fastener consisting of a narrow strip of welded metal used to join steel members
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
sweetadjectiveUS /swiːt/
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
tenderadjectiveUS /ˈtendər/
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
ThedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
theypronounUS /ðeɪ/
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
WepronounUS /wiː/
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
whenconjunctionUS /wen/
at the time that
From this reading Peggy and I hurried over home, stopping, when we were safely out of earshot, to laugh.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
withoutprepositionUS /wɪˈθaʊt/
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Only youth can be sentimental without being mirth-provoking.
wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading We promised that we would, and Aunt Olivia arose with an air of relief.
youthnounUS /juːθ/
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading The romances of the middle-aged may be to them as tender and sweet as those of youth, but they are apt to possess a good deal of humour for onlookers.
