used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
in the past
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
AlasexclamationUS /əˈlæs/
used to show sadness, pity, or regret
From this reading Alas, poor foolish Penelope!
(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 May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
apprehensionsnounUS /ˌæprɪˈhenʃənz/
plural of “apprehension” — fearful expectation or anticipation
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
brought into existence
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
cannot
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
a young person of either sex
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
diarynounUS /ˈdaɪəri/
a daily written record of (usually personal) experiences and observations
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
dishonourverb
bring shame or dishonor upon
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
conceived of or imagined or hoped for
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
divisible by two
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
at any time
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
morally objectionable behavior
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
devoid of good sense or judgment
From this reading Alas, poor foolish Penelope!
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 And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
horridadjectiveUS /ˈhɔːrəd/
exceedingly bad
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
ill-omenedadjective
marked by or promising bad fortune
From this reading What ill-omened words were those!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
ironynounUS /ˈaɪrəni/
witty language used to convey insults or scorn
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
justifiedadjectiveUS /ˈdʒʌstəfaɪd/
having words so spaced that lines have straight even margins
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to form the superlative
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
not any; not one
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
PenelopenounUS /pəˈneləpi/
(Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity; for 10 years while Odysseus fought the Trojan War she resisted numerous suitors until Odysseus returned and killed them
From this reading Alas, poor foolish Penelope!
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading Alas, poor foolish Penelope!
presumptuousnessnoun
audacious (even arrogant) behavior that you have no right to
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
slaverynounUS /ˈsleɪvəri/
the state of being under the control of another person
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
surpassingadjectiveUS /sərˈpæsɪŋ/
exceeding or surpassing usual limits especially in excellence
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading What ill-omened words were those!
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
past form of “visit” — go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading What ill-omened words were those!
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What ill-omened words were those!
which person or people
From this reading May God, who knows all things, must know that those words were even more justified than I dreamed of at the time: the slavery and dishonour surpassing my most evil apprehensions.
in the company of; together with
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
the words that are spoken
From this reading What ill-omened words were those!
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
inflected form of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading But a few months ago I wrote in this diary that no child of mine should ever be born into slavery and dishonour.
but in spite of that
From this reading And yet I cannot believe that God would have visited their presumptuousness upon me with such horrid irony.
