used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
(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 They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
betide-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
a statute in draft before it becomes law
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
board-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
the two together, not just one
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
a youthful male person
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
braying
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
brownenounUS /braʊn/
English illustrator of several of Dickens' novels (1815-1882)
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
cannonsnounUS /ˈkænənz/
plural of “cannon” — a large artillery gun that is usually on wheels
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
canstmodal verbUS /kænst/
an old form of “can”, used with “thou”
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
clapt
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
cride
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
DorynounUS /ˈdɔːri/
a small boat of shallow draft with cross thwarts for seats and rowlocks for oars with which it is propelled
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
Dory-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
drumme-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
dub-a-dub
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
goodlyadjectiveUS /ˈɡʊdli/
large in amount or extent or degree
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
grapling-hooks
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
honounUS /hoʊ/
a trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group; occurs together with yttrium; forms highly magnetic compounds
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
hoistverbUS /hɔɪst/
raise or haul up with or as if with mechanical help
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
looke
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
(often followed by “of”) a large number or amount or extent
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
lowd
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
maine-top
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
meisseine
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
plide
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
roring
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
sailes
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
transport commercially
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
some-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
spie-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
the property of being physically or mentally strong
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
sword-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
the upper part of anything
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
tride-a
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
trow
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
trumpetsnounUS /ˈtrʌmpəts/
pitcher plant of southeastern United States having erect yellow trumpet-shaped pitchers with wide mouths and erect lids
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading The grapling-hooks were brought at length, the browne bill and the sword-a; John Dory at length, for all his strength, was clapt fast under board-a.
untoprepositionUS /ˈʌntuː/
an old word for “to”
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The roring cannons then were plide, and dub-a-dub went the drumme-a; The braying trumpets lowd they cride to courage both all and some-a.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading ‘Run up, my boy, unto the maine-top, and looke what thou canst spie-a.’
any or all of a kind, it does not matter which
From this reading They hoist their sailes, both top and top, the meisseine and all was tride-a; And every man stood to his lot, whatever should betide-a.
which person or people
From this reading ‘Who ho! who ho! a goodly ship I do see, I trow it be John Dory-a.’
