used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
(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 THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
next to; at the side of
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
terminate
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
rid of obstructions
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
intentionally conceived
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
firingnounUS /ˈfaɪrɪŋ/
the act of firing weapons or artillery at an enemy
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
footfallnounUS /ˈfʊtfɔːl/
the sound of a step of someone walking
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
inflected form of “fight” — be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
plural of “gun” — a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel)
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
used of physical heat; having a high or higher than desirable temperature or giving off heat or feeling or causing a sensation of heat or burning
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
the force of workers available
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
in motion
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The night was clear and hot, scarcely a breath of air moving.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
o'clockadverbUS /əˈklɑːk/
according to the clock
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
occasionaladjectiveUS /əˈkeɪʒənəl/
occurring from time to time
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
and nothing more
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
outstretchedadjectiveUS /aʊtˈstretʃt/
fully extended especially in length
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
PHILADELPHIAnounUS /ˌfɪləˈdelfiə/
the largest city in Pennsylvania; located in the southeastern part of the state on the Delaware river; site of Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed; site of the University of Pennsylvania
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
an open way (generally public) for travel or transportation
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
only a very short time before
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
sentinelnounUS /ˈsentənəl/
a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
shirt-sleeves
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
silhouetteverbUS /ˌsɪləˈwet/
project on a background, such as a screen, like a silhouette
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
sky-line
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
inflected form of “sleep” — be asleep
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading There was no sound of firing, only an occasional footfall to break the silence of the night.
not in physical motion
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Here and there against the sky-line passed the dark silhouette of a sentinel.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading All about me the men lay outstretched upon the ground, still in their shirt-sleeves, as they had fought, their guns beside them.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE ROAD TO PHILADELPHIA It must have been ten o'clock, and, if I had slept at all, I was scarcely conscious of it.
