used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
Extreme physical or mental suffering; intense anguish.
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
antsnounUS /ænts/
plural of “ant” — social insect living in organized colonies; characteristically the males and fertile queen have wings during breeding season; wingless sterile females are the workers
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
from appearances alone
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
next to; at the side of
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
a glass or plastic vessel used for storing drinks or other liquids; typically cylindrical without handles and with a narrow neck that can be plugged or capped
From this reading Its eye moved to the bottle which Hans held in his hand.
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
crawlingnounUS /ˈkrɔːlɪŋ/
a slow mode of locomotion on hands and knees or dragging the body
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
dropsnounUS /drɑːps/
plural of “drop” — a shape that is spherical and small
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
free from liquid or moisture; lacking natural or normal moisture or depleted of water; or no longer wet
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
the organ of sight
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
flasknounUS /flæsk/
bottle that has a narrow neck
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Its eye moved to the bottle which Hans held in his hand.
HansnounUS /hɑːns/
plural of “han” — imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time from 206 BC to AD 220) and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy; remembered as one of the great eras of Chinese civilization
From this reading Its eye moved to the bottle which Hans held in his hand.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading Its eye moved to the bottle which Hans held in his hand.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
jawsnounUS /dʒɔːz/
plural of “jaw” — the part of the skull of a vertebrate that frames the mouth and holds the teeth
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
immediately past
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
the superlative of “little” that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by “the”; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
lifelesslyadverb
without animation or vitality
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
plural of “limb” — one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
the event of something being raised upward
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
swarmnounUS /swɔːrm/
a moving crowd
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
thirstnounUS /θɜːrst/
a physiological need to drink
From this reading It was a small dog, apparently in the last agony of death from thirst.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
The passage at the back of the mouth.
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
a mobile mass of muscular tissue covered with mucous membrane and located in the oral cavity
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Its tongue was out, its jaws dry, its limbs extended lifelessly, and a swarm of black ants were crawling about its lips and throat.
at the time that
From this reading He opened the flask, and was raising it to his lips, when his eye fell on an object lying on the rock beside him; he thought it moved.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Its eye moved to the bottle which Hans held in his hand.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Three drops are enough," at last thought he; "I may, at least, cool my lips with it."
