used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
barkedverbUS /bɑːrkt/
past form of “bark” — speak in an unfriendly tone
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
a division of some larger or more complex organization
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
crackleverbUS /ˈkrækəl/
make a crackling sound
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
crashverbUS /kræʃ/
fall or come down violently
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
don't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
United States actor (born in Ireland); father of Georgiana Emma Barrymore (1827-1862)
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
Ethan
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
Ethan's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
decreasing in amount or degree
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
alert carnivorous mammal with pointed muzzle and ears and a bushy tail; most are predators that do not hunt in packs
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
frozenadjectiveUS /ˈfroʊzən/
turned into ice; affected by freezing or by long and severe cold
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
a movable barrier in a fence or wall
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
larches
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
go away from a place
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
loadedadjectiveUS /ˈloʊdɪd/
filled with a great quantity
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
MattnounUS /mæt/
the property of having little or no contrast; lacking highlights or gloss
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
Mattie
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
musket-shot
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
on one occasion
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/
above and across; more than
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
quickenedverbUS /ˈkwɪkənd/
past form of “quicken” — move faster
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
reverberatedverbUS /rɪˈvɜːrbəreɪtɪd/
past form of “reverberate” — ring or echo with sound
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
shrankverbUS /ʃræŋk/
inflected form of “shrink” — wither, as with a loss of moisture
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
sightedadjectiveUS /ˈsaɪtɪd/
able to see
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
stifledadjectiveUS /ˈstaɪfəld/
held in check with difficulty
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
not in physical motion
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
stoopverbUS /stuːp/
bend one's back forward from the waist on down
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
the act of traveling by foot
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The night was so still that they heard the frozen snow crackle under their feet.
Where'd
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords
From this reading He had to stoop his head to catch her stifled whisper: “Where’d I go, if I did?”
the trees and other plants in a large densely wooded area
From this reading The crash of a loaded branch falling far off in the woods reverberated like a musket-shot, and once a fox barked, and Mattie shrank closer to Ethan, and quickened her steps.
the words that are spoken
From this reading At length they sighted the group of larches at Ethan’s gate, and as they drew near it the sense that the walk was over brought back his words.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Then you don’t want to leave us, Matt?”
