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adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
achieve
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
anythingpronounUS /ˈeniθɪŋ/
any thing at all
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
bare
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
belonged
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
beyondprepositionUS /bɪˈɑːnd/
on the far side of; further than
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
blind
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
book-lovers
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
business
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
causes
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
chronicler
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
contented
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
contrived
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
day
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
defects
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
distinction
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
doauxiliary verbUS /duː/
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
drove
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
enviable
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
espouse
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
evernounUS /ever/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
expected
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
fact
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
far
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
fatality
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
force
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
Harden
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
Hereditary
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
himpronounUS /hɪm/
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
incurable
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
inherited
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
instinct
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
Joseph
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
less
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
Library
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
many
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
masters
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
matter
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
nodeterminerUS /noʊ/
not any; not one
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
noteworthy
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
obscurer
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
opposites
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From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
portraits
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
psychology
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
qualities
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
recorded
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
regions
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From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
search
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
Sir
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From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
sitting
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From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
some
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
statement
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From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
ThedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
too
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
wentnounUS /went/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Sir Joseph Harden and those book-lovers who went before him had the incurable defects of their qualities.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading It was not his business to search into its causes, which belonged to the obscurer regions of psychology.
whopronounUS /huː/
which person or people
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
wives
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Their wives were not expected to do anything noteworthy, beyond sitting for their portraits to the masters of their day; though, as a matter of fact, many of them contrived to achieve a far less enviable distinction.
woman
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The chronicler who recorded that no woman had ever inherited the Harden Library contented himself with the bare statement of the fact.
working
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hereditary instinct, working in them with a force as of some blind fatality, drove too many of them to espouse their opposites.
