used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or split
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
rid of obstructions
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
plural of “footstep” — the sound of a step of someone walking
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
fulfillmentnounUS /fʊlˈfɪlmənt/
a feeling of satisfaction at having achieved your desires
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
glamournounUS /ˈɡlæmər/
alluring beauty or charm (often with sex-appeal)
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
hauntingadjectiveUS /ˈhɔːntɪŋ/
continually recurring to the mind
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
irradiatedverbUS /ˌɪˈreɪdieɪtɪd/
past form of “irradiate” — give spiritual insight to; in religion
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
melodynounUS /ˈmelədi/
a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
minoradjectiveUS /ˈmaɪnər/
of lesser importance or stature or rank
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
OverheadadverbUS /ˈoʊvərˈhed/
above your head; in the sky
From this reading Overhead she was singing.
refrainverbUS /rɪˈfreɪn/
resist doing something
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
rhythmnounUS /ˈrɪðəm/
the basic rhythmic unit in a piece of music
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Overhead she was singing.
primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
the act of singing vocal music
From this reading Overhead she was singing.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
stairnounUS /ster/
support consisting of a place to rest the foot while ascending or descending a stairway
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading He heard the door open and then her light footsteps on the stair outside.
a special situation
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading The voice was clear and sweet and happy.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Overhead she was singing.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading He did not know the melody; some minor refrain of broken rhythm which seemed always to die away short of fulfillment.
extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers
From this reading A haunting thing of mystery and glamour, such mystery and glamour as had irradiated his long and wonderful night.
