Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
advances
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
amongprepositionUS /əˈmʌŋ/
surrounded by; in the middle of a group
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
combined
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
condemned
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
creaturenounUS /ˈcreature/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
daughters
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
distinguished
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
find
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
five
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
ForprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
fromprepositionUS /frʌm/
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
genius
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
half-savage
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
hard
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
hepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
himpronounUS /hɪm/
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
keep
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
manner
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
Men
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
obscurity
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
onepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
own
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
patronizing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
penetrated
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
perceptibly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
poverty
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
profession
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
proud
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
samenounUS /same/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
shade
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
shrunk
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
soconjunctionUS /soʊ/
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
solitude
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
subtle
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
temperament
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
timenounUS /time/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
too
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He condemned their manner as a shade too patronizing to his proud obscurity.
two
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Men had penetrated it, among them one or two distinguished in his own profession.
unsophisticated
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
virgin
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
wives
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
women
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But as for their women, the wives and daughters of the distinguished, he had shrunk perceptibly from their advances.
wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading It would have been hard to find a creature so subtle and at the same time so unsophisticated as he.
years
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For five years his genius, his temperament and his poverty had combined to keep him in a half-savage virgin solitude.
