used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
activitynounUS /ækˈtɪvəti/
any specific behavior
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
anew
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading THE VERDICT OF AN EXPERT.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
past form of “appear” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
CarnegienounUS /ˈkɑːrnəɡi/
United States educator famous for writing a book about how to win friends and influence people (1888-1955)
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
inflected form of “carry” — move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
a person who is in charge
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
commissionnounUS /kəˈmɪʃən/
a special group delegated to consider some matter
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
detectivesnounUS /dɪˈtektɪvz/
plural of “detective” — a police officer who investigates crimes
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
documentsnounUS /ˈdɑːkjəmənts/
plural of “document” — writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
EXPERTadjectiveUS /ˈekspərt/
having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude
From this reading THE VERDICT OF AN EXPERT.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
plural of “finger” — any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
-ing form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
set down according to a plan
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
easily agitated
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE VERDICT OF AN EXPERT.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
packetnounUS /ˈpækət/
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
personagenoun
another word for person; a person not meriting identification
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
the state of being present; current existence
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
queriedverbUS /ˈkwɪrid/
inflected form of “query” — pose a question
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
conforming to the established language usage of educated native speakers
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
suppressedadjectiveUS /səˈprest/
kept from public knowledge by various means
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE VERDICT OF AN EXPERT.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
usualadjectiveUS /ˈjuːʒəwəl/
occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure
From this reading He carried his "documents" in a small packet, which he laid upon the desk, and he turned upon the Chief a face as cheerful and as full of suppressed activity as usual.
VERDICTnounUS /ˈvɜːrdɪkt/
(law) the findings of a jury on issues of fact submitted to it for decision; can be used in formulating a judgment
From this reading THE VERDICT OF AN EXPERT.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Late in the afternoon of the day following that on which Carnegie the Expert had received his commission from the Chief of the detectives, he appeared again in the presence of that personage.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes;" beginning to open the packet with quick, nervous fingers.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Well?" queried the Chief, glancing down at the packet, "have you done?"
