used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
(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 But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
that part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher nervous centers; enclosed within the skull; continuous with the spinal cord
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
characteristicsnounUS /ˌkerəktərˈɪstɪks/
plural of “characteristic” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
ClaudiusnounUS /ˈklɔːdiəs/
Roman Emperor after his nephew Caligula was murdered; consolidated the Roman Empire and conquered southern Britain; was poisoned by his fourth wife Agrippina after her son Nero was named as Claudius' heir (10 BC to AD 54)
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
a beverage consisting of an infusion of ground coffee beans
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
Countess's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
darkenedadjectiveUS /ˈdɑːrkənd/
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
an effort that is inconvenient
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
EarlyadjectiveUS /ˈɜːrli/
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
drained of energy or effectiveness; extremely tired; completely exhausted
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
horsebacknounUS /ˈhɔːrsbæk/
the back of a horse
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
a vague idea in which some confidence is placed
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
a female domestic
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
maidsnounUS /meɪdz/
plural of “maid” — a female domestic
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
missivenounUS /ˈmɪsɪv/
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
in addition to what has just been said
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
a brief written record
From this reading Early in the morning her maid had brought her coffee, and with it a note in a foreign hand.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
influenced or controlled by a powerful force such as a strong emotion
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
sealedadjectiveUS /siːld/
established irrevocably
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
sendernounUS /ˈsendər/
someone who transmits a message
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
singlyadverbUS /ˈsɪŋɡli/
one by one; one at a time
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
plural of “trouble” — a source of difficulty
From this reading Troubles never come singly; moreover, they come on horseback, and go away on foot.
hard to endure
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
unpleasantadjectiveUS /ənˈplezənt/
offensive or disagreeable; causing discomfort or unhappiness
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
usualadjectiveUS /ˈjuːʒəwəl/
occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
precisely as stated
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
waxverbUS /wæks/
cover with wax
From this reading But the missive was sealed with wax, and a plain "N" was all the impression.
which person or people
From this reading The maid, who was French, and possessed the usual characteristics of French maids, had exhausted her brain in trying to discover who the sender might be.
in the company of; together with
From this reading If Claudius had passed an unpleasant afternoon, the Countess's day had been darkened with the shadow of a very serious difficulty.
