used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
absurdlyadverbUS /əbˈsɜːrdli/
in an absurd manner or to an absurd degree
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/
later than; following
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
agencynounUS /ˈeɪdʒənsi/
an administrative unit of government
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
(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 Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
babenounUS /beɪb/
a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
bequeathedverbUS /bəˈkwiːθt/
past form of “bequeath” — leave or give by will after one's death
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
Blount
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
brought into existence
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
a young person of either sex
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
christenedverbUS /ˈkrɪsənd/
past form of “christen” — administer baptism to
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
providing or experiencing physical well-being or relief (“comfy” is informal)
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
givenadjectiveUS /ˈɡɪvən/
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
godfathersnounUS /ˈɡɑːdfɑːðərz/
plural of “godfather” — any man who serves as a sponsor for a child at baptism
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
godmothersnounUS /ˈɡɑːdmʌðərz/
plural of “godmother” — any woman who serves as a sponsor for a child at baptism
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
gratefullyadverbUS /ˈɡreɪtfəli/
with appreciation; in a grateful manner
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading That was not her real name.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
inoffensiveadjectiveUS /ˌɪnəˈfensɪv/
not causing anger or annoyance
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
an unmarried girl (especially a virgin)
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
MARISnounUS /ˈmerɪs/
plural of “mari” — a member of a rural Finnish people living in eastern Russia
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading That was not her real name.
not any; not one
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading That was not her real name.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
patronymicnounUS /ˌpætrəˈnɪmɪk/
a family name derived from name of your father or a paternal ancestor (especially with an affix (such as -son in English or O'- in Irish) added to the name of your father or a paternal ancestor)
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
pronouncedadjectiveUS /prəˈnaʊnst/
strongly marked; easily noticeable
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory
From this reading That was not her real name.
characterized by socially or conventionally acceptable morals
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
possessing material wealth
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
the display of a motion picture
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
spelledverbUS /speld/
past form of “spell” — orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
STELLAnounUS /ˈstelə/
United States minimalist painter (born in 1936)
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That was not her real name.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
therebyadverbUS /ˈðerˈbaɪ/
by that means or because of that
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That was not her real name.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
accumulated knowledge or erudition or enlightenment
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
