used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
on the far side of; further than
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
earnest and conscientious activity intended to do or accomplish something
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
Not remembered; lapsed from memory.
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
unusually great in size or amount or degree or especially extent or scope
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Slowly, very slowly, she released it.
Jane
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
knife-blow
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
knobnounUS /nɑːb/
a circular rounded projection or protuberance
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
the force of workers available
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
and nothing more
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
outeradjectiveUS /ˈaʊtər/
being on the outside or further from a center
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
panellingnoun
a panel or section of panels in a wall or door
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
releasedverbUS /riˈliːst/
past form of “release” — release, as from one's grip
From this reading Slowly, very slowly, she released it.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Slowly, very slowly, she released it.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading Slowly, very slowly, she released it.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
straightenedverbUS /ˈstreɪtənd/
past form of “straighten” — straighten up or out; make straight
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
tell-tale
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
in or at that place or location
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
arousing affect
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading As she leaned there, her head almost touching the panelling, she could hear two men talking in the hall beyond.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading Jane stood in the dark, her hand upon the door knob.
precisely as stated
From this reading Slowly, very slowly, she released it.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
at the time that
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
in the company of; together with
From this reading With an immense effort she straightened herself, and was about to move away when a thought struck her like a knife-blow—the key—the second tell-tale key—if she had forgotten it!
the words that are spoken
From this reading They spoke in English, but only the outer sound of the words came to her.
