adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
arteriesnounUS /ˈɑːrtəriz/
plural of “artery” — a blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the body
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
becameverbUS /bɪˈkeɪm/
inflected form of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
beganverbUS /bɪˈɡæn/
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
BengalnounUS /ˈbeŋɡəl/
a region whose eastern part is now Bangladesh and whose western part is included in India
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
blackadjectiveUS /blæk/
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
butconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
cagenounUS /keɪdʒ/
an enclosure made or wire or metal bars in which birds or animals can be kept
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
cameverbUS /keɪm/
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
corpuscles
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
dancenounUS /dæns/
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
danse
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
denounUS /diː/
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
Denis
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
diseasenounUS /dɪˈziːz/
an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
drummedverbUS /drʌmd/
inflected form of “drum” — make a rhythmic sound
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
glumlyadverbUS /ˈɡlʌmli/
in a sullen manner
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
gushesnounUS /ˈɡʌʃɪz/
plural of “gush” — a sudden rapid flow (as of water)
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
HepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
himpronounUS /hɪm/
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
hotadjectiveUS /hɑːt/
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
insideadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈsaɪd/
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
jetsnounUS /dʒets/
plural of “jet” — an airplane powered by one or more jet engines
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
jigged
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
lightadjectiveUS /laɪt/
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
likeverbUS /laɪk/
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
LittleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
movementnounUS /ˈmuːvmənt/
a change of position that does not entail a change of location
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
nigger
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Little black nigger corpuscles jigged and drummed in his arteries.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
onepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
outadjectiveUS /aʊt/
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
palais
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
perfumenounUS /pərˈfjuːm/
a distinctive odor that is pleasant
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
pianolanoun
a mechanically operated piano that uses a roll of perforated paper to activate the keys
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
preliminaryadjectiveUS /prɪˈlɪməneri/
denoting an action or event preceding or in preparation for something more important
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
pretendingnounUS /priˈtendɪŋ/
the act of giving a false appearance
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
ragtimenounUS /ˈræɡtaɪm/
music with a syncopated melody (usually for the piano)
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
readverbUS /red/
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
satnounUS /sæt/
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
squirtingadjectiveUS /ˈskwɜːrtɪŋ/
propelled violently in a usually narrow stream
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
symptomsnounUS /ˈsɪmptəmz/
plural of “symptom” — (medicine) any sensation or change in bodily function that is experienced by a patient and is associated with a particular disease
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
thenadverbUS /ðen/
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
thingsnounUS /θɪŋz/
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
treaclenoun
a pale cane syrup
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
uncomfortableadjectiveUS /ənˈkʌmfərtəbəl/
conducive to or feeling mental discomfort
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
veryadjectiveUS /ˈveri/
precisely as stated
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
walkingadjectiveUS /ˈwɔːkɪŋ/
close enough to be walked to
From this reading He became a cage of movement, a walking palais de danse.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was very uncomfortable, like the preliminary symptoms of a disease.
whenconjunctionUS /wen/
at the time that
From this reading Denis did not dance, but when ragtime came squirting out of the pianola in gushes of treacle and hot perfume, in jets of Bengal light, then things began to dance inside him.
window-seats
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He sat in one of the window-seats, glumly pretending to read.
