used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
next to; at the side of
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
can't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
the protruding part of the lower jaw
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
couchnounUS /kaʊtʃ/
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
fiddlenounUS /ˈfɪdəl/
bowed stringed instrument that is the highest member of the violin family; this instrument has four strings and a hollow body and an unfretted fingerboard and is played with a bow
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
start firing a weapon
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
husband'snounUS /ˈhʌzbəndz/
possessive form of “husband” — a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
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 For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
MacnounUS /mæk/
a waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
McTavish
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
McTavish's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
mus'n't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
reclinedverbUS /rɪˈklaɪnd/
past form of “recline” — move the upper body backwards and down
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
not tired; refreshed as by sleeping or relaxing
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
marked by absence of sound
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
sinceprepositionUS /sɪns/
from a time in the past until now
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
sympatheticallyadverbUS /ˌsɪmpəˈθetɪkəli/
with respect to the sympathetic nervous system
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
carry out
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “They can’t take our place from us, I know.”
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading It hung on the wall and the man sat before the fire, his chin in his hands.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For the first night since the long nights had come Big McTavish’s fiddle was silent.
willowsnounUS /ˈwɪloʊz/
plural of “willow” — any of numerous deciduous trees and shrubs of the genus Salix
From this reading Mrs. McTavish reclined on a couch of willows beside him, and her eyes rested on her husband’s face sympathetically.
be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You mus’n’t worry about it, Mac,” she said.
