used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
(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 He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
baggedverbUS /bæɡd/
inflected form of “bag” — capture or kill, as in hunting
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
Celia's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
combverbUS /koʊm/
straighten with a comb
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
combedadjectiveUS /koʊmd/
(of hair) made tidy with a comb
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
DaltonnounUS /ˈdɔːltən/
English chemist and physicist who formulated atomic theory and the law of partial pressures; gave the first description of red-green color blindness (1766-1844)
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
disappearancenounUS /ˌdɪsəˈpɪrəns/
the act of leaving secretly or without explanation
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
past form of “disappear” — get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
discussedverbUS /dɪˈskʌst/
past form of “discuss” — to consider or examine in speech or writing
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
don't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
Dorothy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
let fall to the ground
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
elusiveadjectiveUS /ɪˈluːsɪv/
difficult to describe
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
fine-toothedadjective
having fine teeth set close together
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
destroyed or killed
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
and nothing more
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
Moran
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
reflectivelyadverb
in a reflective manner
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
past form of “sigh” — heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
an instance of visual perception
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
synonymsnounUS /ˈsɪnənɪms/
plural of “synonym” — two words that can be interchanged in a context are said to be synonymous relative to that context
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
Tavia
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
Tavia's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
in or at that place or location
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
male cat
From this reading The boys had just combed Dalton “with a fine-toothed comb” for the elusive Tom Moran, and had bagged nothing.
a track or mark left by something that has passed
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
untilprepositionUS /ənˈtɪl/
up to a particular time
From this reading The girls had discussed the disappearance until there seemed nothing more to be said.
vamoosed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “We don’t really know that he _was_ Celia’s big brother,” said Dorothy, reflectively.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
winkedverbUS /wɪŋkt/
past form of “wink” — signal by winking
From this reading He had gone--vamoosed--disappeared--winked out; all these synonyms were Tavia’s.
in the company of; together with
From this reading ON THE TRAIL “It seems almost impossible that a man with _such_ a red head could so completely drop out of sight,” sighed Tavia the next day.
