used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
how long something has existed
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
inflected form of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
a young person of either sex
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
very opposed in nature or character or purpose
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
a movement into or inward
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
a quick look
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
death of a person
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
imposingadjectiveUS /ˌɪmˈpoʊzɪŋ/
impressive in appearance
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
Marius
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
a feeling of thoughtful sadness
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
and nothing more
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
an open or empty space in or between things
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
personages
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
Pontmercy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
salonnounUS /səˈlɑːn/
gallery where works of art can be displayed
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
unusual or striking
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
skylightnounUS /ˈskaɪlaɪt/
a window in a roof to admit daylight
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
sombreadjective
lacking brightness or color; dull
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
in the near future
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
not in physical motion
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
confined on all sides
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
a base found in DNA (but not in RNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
warmthnounUS /wɔːrmθ/
the sensation caused by heat energy
From this reading This opening was sombre, and more cold than warmth, more night than day, came to him through this skylight.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading It was the only opening through which he could get a glimpse of life.
which person or people
From this reading This child, who had been all joy and light on entering this strange world, soon became melancholy, and, what is still more contrary to his age, grave.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Surrounded by all those singular and imposing personages, he gazed about him with serious amazement.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Madame de T.’s salon was all that Marius Pontmercy knew of the world.
