used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
absent-mindedly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
anew
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
(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 At all events, Sally did not appear in the tree.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
any thing at all
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading At all events, Sally did not appear in the tree.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
bonenounUS /boʊn/
rigid connective tissue that makes up the skeleton of vertebrates
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
-ing form of “concern” — be relevant to
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
a female human offspring
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading At all events, Sally did not appear in the tree.
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
else
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
plural of “event” — something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading At all events, Sally did not appear in the tree.
fingeringnounUS /ˈfɪŋɡərɪŋ/
the placement of the fingers for playing different notes (or sequences of notes) on a musical instrument
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
half-formed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
Ladue
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
lizardnounUS /ˈlɪzərd/
relatively long-bodied reptile with usually two pairs of legs and a tapering tail
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
witty remark
From this reading At all events, Sally did not appear in the tree.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
(of persons) having the torso erect and legs bent with the body supported on the buttocks
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
skeletonnounUS /ˈskelətən/
something reduced to its minimal form
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Professor Ladue again sat on the floor of his room before the skeleton of his lizard, absent-mindedly fingering a bone.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
in or at that place or location
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
precisely as stated
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading Now and then he looked out of the window at the great tree; at that particular spot in the great tree upon which his daughter had been seated, one morning, not so very long before.
hope for; have a wish
From this reading He may have had a half-formed wish that he might again discover her there.
plural of “wish” — a specific feeling of desire
From this reading But I do not know what half-formed wishes he had, concerning the tree, his daughter, or anything else.
