used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
prior to a specified or implied time
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
belowprepositionUS /bɪˈloʊ/
at or to a lower level than something
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
catastrophenounUS /kəˈtæstrəfi/
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
corpsesnounUS /ˈkɔːrpsəz/
plural of “corps” — an army unit usually consisting of two or more divisions and their support
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
curvedadjectiveUS /kɜːrvd/
having or marked by a curve or smoothly rounded bend
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
Devil'snounUS /ˈdevəlz/
possessive form of “devil” — (Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
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 A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
let fall to the ground
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
at any time
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
expansenounUS /ɪkˈspæns/
a wide scope
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
frightfuladjectiveUS /ˈfraɪtfəl/
provoking horror
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
a young female
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
destroyed or killed
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
grimlyadverbUS /ˈɡrɪmli/
in a grim implacable manner
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
half-a-thousand
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
lacking in or deprived of strength or power
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
PotnounUS /pɑːt/
metal or earthenware cooking vessel that is usually round and deep; often has a handle and lid
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
precipicenounUS /ˈpresəpəs/
a very steep cliff
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
(especially of incident sound or light) bent or sent back
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
sheeradjectiveUS /ʃɪr/
complete and without restriction or qualification; sometimes used informally as intensifiers
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
slopingadjectiveUS /ˈsloʊpɪŋ/
having an oblique or slanted direction
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
stewingnounUS /ˈstuːɪŋ/
an extreme state of worry and agitation
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was nothing to be done for them now, or ever.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
veterannounUS /ˈvetərən/
a serviceman who has seen considerable active service
From this reading The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to the sheer drop of the precipice.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand feet below, he reflected grimly.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading A man, a girl and a dog had gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
witnessedverbUS /ˈwɪtnəst/
past form of “witness” — be a witness to
From this reading He was absolutely helpless in the face of the catastrophe he had witnessed.
