Chapter XVII

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

higher than, or over, something

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

(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 Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a feeling of delight at being entertained

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

a detested person

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

react verbally

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

a large entrance or reception room or area

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the past participle of “be”

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

past form of “believe” — accept as true; take to be true

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “bishop” — a senior member of the Christian clergy having spiritual and administrative authority; appointed in Christian churches to oversee priests or ministers; considered in some churches to be successors of the twelve Apostles of Christ

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

The red fluid that circulates in the heart and blood vessels.

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

brought into existence

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

(according to Marxist thought) being of the property-owning class and exploitive of the working class

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

act in disregard of laws, rules, contracts, or promises

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the act of breaking something

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a collection of things sharing a common attribute

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the act of drawing spatially closer to something

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “commandment” — something that is commanded

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

an institution created to conduct business

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

express strong disapproval of

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

a courteous or respectful or considerate act

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

plural of “daughter” — a female human offspring

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

formerly, the eldest son of the King of France and direct heir to the throne

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

a young unmarried woman

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

zealous in devotion or affection

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

deeply religious

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

unlike in nature or quality or form or degree

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

owed and payable immediately or on demand

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

extremely pleasant in a gentle way

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

agreeably diverting

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

rules governing socially acceptable behavior

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

divisible by two

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

-ing form of “explain” — make plain and comprehensible

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

being or in accordance with current social fashions

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

a New Orleans district lying outside the original city limits; used in combination with the names of various quarters of the city

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

(usually followed by “with” or used as a combining form) generously supplied with

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

unwilling to accept authority or dogma (especially in religion)

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

yet to be or coming

From this reading Surely with royalty lay the social future.

plural of “gentleman” — a man of refinement

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

the emotion of intense dislike; a feeling of dislike so strong that it demands action

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

extremely wicked, deeply criminal

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

a series of ordered groupings of people or things within a system

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

of or characteristic of low rank or importance

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a crafty and involved plot to achieve your (usually sinister) ends

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

possessive form of “king” — a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

apprehended with certainty

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

plural of “lady” — a polite name for any woman

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading Surely with royalty lay the social future.

plural of “le” — a chronic inflammatory collagen disease affecting connective tissue (skin or joints)

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “lord” — terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

title used for a married Frenchwoman

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

produced by a manufacturing process

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

social deportment

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the force of workers available

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “madame” — title used for a married Frenchwoman

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

possessive form of “minister” — a person authorized to conduct religious worship

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

how something is done or how it happens

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

used as a French courtesy title; equivalent to English “Mr”

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

with respect to moral principles

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

subject to death

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

used to form the superlative

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the state of being of noble birth

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

dutifully complying with the commands or instructions of those in authority

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

past form of “offer” — make available or accessible, provide or furnish

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

one of two equal parts of a divisible whole

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

and nothing more

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

the termination of a ruler or institution (especially by force)

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

have ownership or possession of

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

to a distinctly greater extent or degree than is common

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

a human being

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “philosopher” — a specialist in philosophy

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

squeeze tightly between the fingers

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

inflected form of “plot” — plan secretly, usually something illegal

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

involving or characteristic of politics or parties or politicians

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

with regard to social relationships involving authority

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

French noblewoman who was the lover of Louis XV, whose policies she influenced (1721-1764)

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

having great power or force or potency or effect

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

plural of “princess” — a female member of a royal family other than the queen (especially the daughter of a sovereign)

From this reading Monsieur the Dauphin, mesdames the princesses of the blood were known to hate Madame de Pompadour, to be plotting her overthrow; that was enough.

blessed with privileges

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “pupil” — a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a purple color or pigment

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

possessive form of “queen” — the only fertile female in a colony of social insects such as bees and ants and termites; its function is to lay eggs

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

(usually preceded by “in”) a detail or point

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

with regret (used in polite formulas)

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

without pity; in a merciless manner

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

payment to the holder of a patent or copyright or resource for the right to use their property

From this reading Surely with royalty lay the social future.

only a very short time before

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

inflected form of “shrug” — raise one's shoulders to indicate indifference or resignation

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

and nothing more

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

estrangement from god

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

with sincerity; without pretense

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

past form of “snatch” — to grasp hastily or eagerly

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “snob” — a person regarded as arrogant and annoying

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the charred portion of a candlewick

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

relating to human society and its members

From this reading Surely with royalty lay the social future.

refrain from harming

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

having great beauty and splendor

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

in a strange manner

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

engaged in a struggle to overcome especially poverty or obscurity

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)

From this reading Surely with royalty lay the social future.

the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

in or at that place or location

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

inflected form of “take” — carry out

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

plural of “type” — a subdivision of a particular kind of thing

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

spatially or metaphorically from a lower to a higher position

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

precisely as stated

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a combatant who is able to defeat rivals

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

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

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

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

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

used to ask for information about something

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

any or all of a kind, it does not matter which

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

which person or people

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

a woman whose husband is dead especially one who has not remarried

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.

in the company of; together with

From this reading DENISE’S ANSWER THE Queen’s ladies had been entertaining their friends, and the antechamber was well filled with a company of the most fashionable and powerful of the _noblesse_, particularly of those high-born ladies and gentlemen who devoted whatever time they could spare from breaking the Ten Commandments with a dulcet courtesy to the amusement of political intrigue.

inside; before a period of time has passed

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “wife” — a married woman; a man's partner in marriage

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading Strangely enough the Queen’s friends were drawn from three very different types--there were the “devout,” _les dévots, les rigoristes_, to whom the free-thinking of the fashionable philosophers coming to be the mode in the Faubourg St. Germain was _anathema maranatha_, my lords of the hierarchy of the bishops, with the high-born women who were their obedient pupils; there were the “fribbles,” the great seigneurs with their wives and sisters and daughters privileged morally as well as politically if only the breach were made within their own class and with due regard to etiquette and good manners, the men and women born within the purple who sincerely believed that “God could scarcely condemn a person of that quality” for what would be mortal sin in a _bourgeois_; and there were the “snobs,” the women above all of the inferior _noblesse_ remorselessly struggling upwards who snatched at the splendid opportunity a queen’s cause and a minister’s cause offered.

an affirmative

From this reading “Yes, to be sure,” the Abbé St. Victor was explaining with the smile of the lay _roué_ to the Duchesse de Pontchartrain, “the King’s sin would be only one-half as heinous if Madame de Pompadour were simply a widow or even a demoiselle”; he took a pinch of snuff and regretfully shrugged his shoulders.