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Mountain Interval
Mountain Interval

Chapter II

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Context Illustration Reading 1/73 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.
And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.
Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!
Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.
But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.
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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.

Mountain Interval

Chapter II

Reading 1/73 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.
Line 2
And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.
Line 3
Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!
Line 4
Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.
Line 5
But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

Learner Dictionary

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

After preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.”

Between preposition US /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading “Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.”

DESCENT noun US /dɪˈsent/

An action of moving downward, dropping, or falling into a deeper place.

From this reading “BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.”

Everyone pronoun US /ˈevriwʌn/

every person

From this reading “BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.”

Everything pronoun US /ˈevriθɪŋ/

all things; all of a situation

From this reading “And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.”

Himself pronoun US /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading “But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.”

Journey noun US /ˈjourney/

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

From this reading “But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.”

Make noun US /make/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.”

Must modal verb US /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading “And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.”

Seemed noun US /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.”

Something pronoun US /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading “Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!”

Sometimes noun US /sometimes/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.”

Though conjunction US /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading “But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.”

Unless conjunction US /ənˈles/

except if; if not

From this reading “Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.”

All words in this reading · 99

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 BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

all

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

AndconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

barn

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

BetweenprepositionUS /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

blew

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

Brown

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

BROWN'S

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

buried

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

cased

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

chores

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

Cross

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

crust

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

DESCENTnounUS /dɪˈsent/

An action of moving downward, dropping, or falling into a deeper place.

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

Describing

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

down

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

everyonepronounUS /ˈevriwʌn/

every person

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

everythingpronounUS /ˈevriθɪŋ/

all things; all of a situation

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

farm

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

few

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

field

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

foothold

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

gained

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

gale

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

gone

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

Got

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

half-past

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

hepronounUS /hiː/

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

heel

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

HisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

hole

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

house

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

icy

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

InprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

journeynounUS /ˈjourney/

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

lantern

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

light

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

lived

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

lofty

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

lots

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

makenounUS /make/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

many

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

miles

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

night

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

ORconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

out

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

pursued

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

repeatedly

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

rings

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

said

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

saw

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

see

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

seemednounUS /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

seen

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

SLIDE

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

somethingpronounUS /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

sometimes

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

somewhere

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

stamped

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

stay

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

stove

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

strove

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

ThatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

there

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

things

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

three

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.

trees

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

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

unlessconjunctionUS /ənˈles/

except if; if not

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

walls

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

wild

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

From this reading And many must have seen him make His wild descent from there one night, 'Cross lots, 'cross walls, 'cross everything, Describing rings of lantern light.

WILLY-NILLY

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

winter

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

From this reading BROWN'S DESCENT OR THE WILLY-NILLY SLIDE Brown lived at such a lofty farm That everyone for miles could see His lantern when he did his chores In winter after half-past three.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Walls were all buried, trees were few: He saw no stay unless he stove A hole in somewhere with his heel.

world

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

From this reading Between the house and barn the gale Got him by something he had on And blew him out on the icy crust That cased the world, and he was gone!

yield

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

From this reading But though repeatedly he strove And stamped and said things to himself, And sometimes something seemed to yield, He gained no foothold, but pursued His journey down from field to field.