the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
bathedverbUS /beɪðd/
past form of “bathe” — cleanse the entire body
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
bound or obligated, as under a pledge to a particular cause, action, or attitude
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
(criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
all through a period, or at some point within it
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
immediately past
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
not any; not one
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
held or filled or in use
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
on one occasion
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
and nothing more
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
parenthesisnounUS /pərˈenθəsɪs/
either of two punctuation marks (or) used to enclose textual material
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
concerning or affecting a particular person or his or her private life and personality
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading The place seemed unfamiliar.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The place seemed unfamiliar.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
strangenessnounUS /ˈstreɪndʒnəs/
unusualness as a consequence of not being well known
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
stretchverbUS /stretʃ/
occupy a large, elongated area
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading The last time he had been here he had stood in no personal danger.
two times
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
fully apprehended as to purport or meaning or explanation
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
unfamiliaradjectiveUS /ˌʌnfəˈmɪljər/
not known or well known
From this reading The place seemed unfamiliar.
unspeakableadjectiveUS /ənˈspiːkəbəl/
defying expression or description
From this reading There had been no black parenthesis in his life during the stretch of which he might have committed an unspeakable crime.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading He entered his bedroom which he had occupied only once or twice during the last few months.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading As he bathed and dressed his sense of strangeness grew, and he understood why.
