used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
anew
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
aimlesslyadverbUS /ˈeɪmləsli/
without aim; in an aimless manner
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
(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 Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
with anxiety or apprehension
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
past form of “cease” — put an end to a state or an activity
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
defences
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
Derry
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
despondencynounUS /dɪˈspɑːndənsi/
feeling downcast and disheartened and hopeless
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
excitedlyadverbUS /ɪkˈsaɪtədli/
with excitement; in an excited manner
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
brought together in one place
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
destroyed or killed
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
groupsnounUS /ɡruːps/
plural of “group” — any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
plural of “house” — a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
incessantlyadverbUS /ˌɪnˈsesəntli/
with unflagging resolve
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
KnotsnounUS /nɑːts/
plural of “knot” — a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
immediately past
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
past form of “listen” — hear with intention
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
the force of workers available
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
the fourth book of the Old Testament; contains a record of the number of Israelites who followed Moses out of Egypt
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/
above and across; more than
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
plural of “person” — a human being
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading A general air of gloom and despondency hung over the place.
restlesslyadverbUS /ˈrestləsli/
in a restless manner
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
the region of the United States lying to the south of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
speakernounUS /ˈspiːkər/
someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous)
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
plural of “street” — a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
strengtheningnounUS /ˈstreŋθənɪŋ/
becoming stronger
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
in the direction of
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
plural of “wall” — an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was an air of excitement in the streets of Derry.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Knots of people were gathered, talking excitedly.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
whileconjunctionUS /waɪl/
during the time that
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading Women stood at the doors of all the houses, while men moved aimlessly and restlessly about between the groups, listened for a time to a speaker, and then moved on again.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading The work of strengthening the defences, which had gone on incessantly for the last three months, had ceased, while numbers of persons were gathered on the walls, looking anxiously towards the south.
