used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
arisenverbUS /ərˈɪzən/
inflected form of “arise” — come into existence; take on form or shape
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
exhale hard
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
churchyardnounUS /ˈtʃɜːrtʃjɑːrd/
the yard associated with a church
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
crushingadjectiveUS /ˈkrʌʃɪŋ/
physically or spiritually devastating; often used in combination
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
forsaken by owner or inhabitants
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
plural of “difficulty” — an effort that is inconvenient
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
Doris's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
dreadedadjectiveUS /ˈdredɪd/
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
the act of escaping physically
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
apart from; not including
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
having dropped by the force of gravity
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
granitenounUS /ˈɡrænət/
plutonic igneous rock having visibly crystalline texture; generally composed of feldspar and mica and quartz
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
to a considerable degree
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
of the present time and place
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
immediately past
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading The blow, long dreaded, had fallen at last.
love-affair
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
a form of address for a man
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
not any; not one
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
a course of conduct
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
quietadjectiveUS /ˈkwaɪət/
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
RectorynounUS /ˈrektəri/
an official residence provided by a church for its parson or vicar or rector
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
Squire's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
Stirling
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
threateningadjectiveUS /ˈθretənɪŋ/
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
triangularadjectiveUS /traɪˈæŋɡjələr/
having three angles; forming or shaped like a triangle
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
precisely as stated
From this reading A very quiet spot; at this hour entirely deserted.
close enough to be walked to
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
plural of “wall” — an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
wardedverbUS /ˈwɔːrdɪd/
past form of “ward” — watch over or shield from danger or harm; protect
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading No way of escape lay open, except through the immediate crushing of Doris's new love-affair.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The Squire's Dark Hour WALKING heavily, like an old man, Mr. Stirling passed through the Rectory garden, took the path which led across a small triangular field and entered the churchyard.
a late time of life
From this reading Difficulties, warded off through years, had suddenly arisen like granite walls, threatening to close him in.
