used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
behindprepositionUS /bɪˈhaɪnd/
at or toward the back of something
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
zealous in devotion or affection
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
earlier in time; previously
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
employmentnounUS /emˈplɔɪmənt/
the state of being employed or having a job
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
be identical or equivalent to
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
only a very short time before
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
inadequateadjectiveUS /ˌɪˈnædəkwət/
lacking the requisite qualities or resources to meet a task
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
English writer and lexicographer (1709-1784)
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
JOHNSON'SnounUS /ˈdʒɑːnsənz/
possessive form of “johnson” — English writer and lexicographer (1709-1784)
From this reading JOHNSON'S WRITINGS.
referring to the second of two things or persons mentioned (or the last one or ones of several)
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
the literary culture
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
of or relating to or characteristic of literature
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
creative writing of recognized artistic value
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
plural of “life” — a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
the force of workers available
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
used to form the superlative
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
obviousadjectiveUS /ˈɑːbviəs/
easily perceived by the senses or grasped by the mind
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
and nothing more
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
an amount of time
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
the particular portion of space occupied by something
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
pressurenounUS /ˈpreʃər/
the force applied to a unit area of surface; measured in pascals (SI unit) or in dynes (cgs unit)
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
productionsnounUS /prəˈdʌkʃənz/
plural of “production” — the act or process of producing something
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
proportionnounUS /prəˈpɔːrʃən/
the quotient obtained when the magnitude of a part is divided by the magnitude of the whole
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
plural of “reason” — a rational motive for a belief or action
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
any object that is left unused or still extant
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
scantyadjectiveUS /ˈskænti/
lacking in magnitude or quantity
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
express in speech
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
depleted of energy, force, or strength
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
to a sufficient degree
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It remains to speak of Johnson's position in literature.
underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
precisely as stated
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
belonging to which person
From this reading For reasons sufficiently obvious, few men whose lives have been devoted to letters for an equal period, have left behind them such scanty and inadequate remains.
past form of “work” — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading Johnson, as we have seen, worked only under the pressure of circumstances; a very small proportion of his latter life was devoted to literary employment.
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
WRITINGSnounUS /ˈraɪtɪŋz/
the third of three divisions of the Hebrew Scriptures
From this reading JOHNSON'S WRITINGS.
a late time of life
From this reading The working hours of his earlier years were spent for the most part in productions which can hardly be called literary.
