used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
in the past
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
(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 For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
take a court case to a higher court for review
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
the verbal act of requesting
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
bafflednounUS /ˈbæfəld/
people who are frustrated and perplexed
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
coloredadjectiveUS /ˈkʌlərd/
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
a challenge to do something dangerous or foolhardy
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
Deane
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
opinion or judgment
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
forcingverbUS /ˈfɔːrsɪŋ/
-ing form of “force” — to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
past form of “hesitate” — pause or hold back in uncertainty or unwillingness
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
letauxiliary verbUS /let/
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
mockinglyadverb
in a disrespectful jeering manner
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
referredverbUS /rəˈfɜːrd/
inflected form of “refer” — make reference to
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
United States professional baseball player famous for hitting home runs (1895-1948)
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
express in words
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
a special situation
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
fully apprehended as to purport or meaning or explanation
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
wasn't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I wasn't talking about things long ago, Deane," she said.
(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 Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Ruth colored and felt baffled; she was sure he knew well enough that was not what she referred to.
wistfullyadverbUS /ˈwɪstfəli/
in a wistful manner
From this reading He looked at her, a little mockingly, a little wistfully, as if daring her to go on.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
past form of “wonder” — have a wish or desire to know something
From this reading "I wondered--" She hesitated, looking at him in appeal, as if asking him to admit he understood what she meant without forcing her to say such a thing.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading For a minute he let the pain look out of his eyes at her, looked for all the world as if he wanted her to help him.
