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Moon-Face, and Other Stories
Moon-Face, and Other Stories

Chapter I

Cover illustration for Moon-Face, and Other Stories
Context Illustration Reading 1/38 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.
You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.
Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.
Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.
Be that as it may, I hated John Claverhouse.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Moon-Face, and Other Stories

Chapter I

Reading 1/38 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.
Line 2
You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.
Line 3
Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.
Line 4
Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.
Line 5
Be that as it may, I hated John Claverhouse.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Against preposition US /əˈɡenst/

touching and pressing; in opposition to

From this reading “You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.”

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

Complete noun US /complete/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

John noun US /john/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.”

Know noun US /know/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.”

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

May modal verb US /meɪ/

used to say something is possible, or to give permission

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

Melting noun US /ˈmelting/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.”

Over preposition US /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

Perhaps noun US /perhaps/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.”

Upon preposition US /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading “You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.”

All words in this reading · 76

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

againstprepositionUS /əˈɡenst/

touching and pressing; in opposition to

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

apart

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading Be that as it may, I hated John Claverhouse.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

become

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

believed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

broad

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

ceiling

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

centre

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

cheek-bones

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

cheeks

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

chin

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

circumference

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

Claverhouse

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

completenounUS /complete/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

cumbered

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

dough-ball

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

earth

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

equidistant

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

eyes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

face

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

flattened

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

forehead

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

hated

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

John

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

kind

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

knownounUS /know/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

like

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

man

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

maymodal verbUS /meɪ/

used to say something is possible, or to give permission

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

meltingnounUS /ˈmelting/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

moon

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

moon-faced

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

mother

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

nose

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

offense

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

perfect

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

Perhaps

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

presence

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

pudgy

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

round

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

shoulder

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

superstitious

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

truly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

very

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man.

why

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

wide

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.

wrong

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Perhaps my mother may have been superstitious of the moon and looked upon it over the wrong shoulder at the wrong time.

YoupronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, flattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling.