used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
(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 The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
inflected form of “creep” — move slowly; in the case of people or animals with the body near the ground
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
bringing or deserving severe rebuke or censure
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
Evan
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading He felt inclined to laugh weakly.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
gearnounUS /ɡɪr/
a toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
idiotnounUS /ˈɪdiːət/
a person of subnormal intelligence
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
(often followed by “to”) having a preference, disposition, or tendency
From this reading He felt inclined to laugh weakly.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
the sound of laughing
From this reading He felt inclined to laugh weakly.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
machinerynounUS /məˈʃiːnəri/
machines or machine systems collectively
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
come together
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
nerved
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
win a victory over
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
pistolnounUS /ˈpɪstəl/
a firearm that is held and fired with one hand
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
reactionnounUS /riˈækʃən/
(chemistry) a process in which one or more substances are changed into others
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
the feeling of distress and disbelief that you have when something bad happens accidentally
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
stalledverbUS /stɔːld/
past form of “stall” — postpone doing what one should be doing
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
inflected form of “throw” — propel through the air
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading To have crept into the house heart in mouth and pistol in hand, to have nerved himself to meet and overcome a desperate criminal--and then to find this!
in the direction of
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
unmannedadjectiveUS /ənˈmænd/
lacking a crew
From this reading TOWARDS MORNING The shock of astonishment unmanned Evan.
an act of aggression (as one against a person who resists)
From this reading The violence of the reaction threw all his machinery out of gear; he stalled.
weaklyadverbUS /ˈwiːkli/
in a weak or feeble manner or to a minor degree
From this reading His pistol arm dropped weakly at his side, his mouth hung open, he stared like an idiot.
