aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading McElwin dropped down in an arm chair.
on or to one side
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
carpetnounUS /ˈkɑːrpət/
floor covering consisting of a piece of thick heavy fabric (usually with nap or pile)
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading McElwin dropped down in an arm chair.
circlesnounUS /ˈsɜːrkəlz/
plural of “circle” — ellipse in which the two axes are of equal length; a plane curve generated by one point moving at a constant distance from a fixed point
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
cuttingnounUS /ˈkʌtɪŋ/
the activity of selecting the scenes to be shown and putting them together to create a film
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading McElwin dropped down in an arm chair.
duskyadjective
lighted by or as if by twilight
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
emphaticadjectiveUS /emˈfætɪk/
spoken with emphasis
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
Eva
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
decreasing in amount or degree
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
half-forgotten
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading NOTHING REMARKABLE IN IT.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading NOTHING REMARKABLE IN IT.
McElwin
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
nervenounUS /nɜːrv/
any bundle of nerve fibers running to various organs and tissues of the body
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
a daily or weekly publication on folded sheets; contains news and articles and advertisements
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading NOTHING REMARKABLE IN IT.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
pacedverbUS /peɪst/
past form of “pace” — walk with slow or fast paces
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
patverbUS /pæt/
pat or squeeze fondly or playfully, especially under the chin
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
pianonounUS /piˈænoʊ/
a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
unusual or striking
From this reading NOTHING REMARKABLE IN IT.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
(of persons) having the torso erect and legs bent with the body supported on the buttocks
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
slipperedadjective
shod with slippers
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
swallowsnounUS /ˈswɑːloʊz/
plural of “swallow” — a small amount of liquid food
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
make physical contact with, come in contact with
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
tunenounUS /tuːn/
a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
the act of observing; taking a patient look
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
whileconjunctionUS /waɪl/
during the time that
From this reading Eva was seated at the piano, half turned from it, while with one hand she felt about to touch the nerve of some half-forgotten tune.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading His wife sat near the window, watching the swallows cutting black circles in the dusky air.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Mr. McElwin put aside his newspaper and paced slowly up and down the room, his slippered feet falling with an emphatic pat on the carpet.
