used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/
later than; following
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
a young person of either sex
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
plural of “come” — the thick white fluid containing spermatozoa that is ejaculated by the male genital tract
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
discoveringverbUS /dɪˈskʌvərɪŋ/
-ing form of “discover” — discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
clear to the mind; with distinct mental discernment
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
of concern to or concerning the internal affairs of a nation
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
a social unit living together
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
hauntedadjectiveUS /ˈhɔːntɪd/
having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
(law) a proceeding (usually by a court) where evidence is taken for the purpose of determining an issue of fact and reaching a decision based on that evidence
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
not any; not one
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
plural of “note” — a brief written record
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading A search revealed nothing.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
occupantnounUS /ˈɑːkjəpənt/
someone who lives at a particular place for a prolonged period or who was born there
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
pianonounUS /piˈænoʊ/
a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
playfellownoun
a companion at play
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
possessornounUS /pəˈzesər/
a person who owns something
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
repeatedlyadverbUS /rɪˈpiːtɪdli/
several time
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
past form of “reveal” — make visible
From this reading A search revealed nothing.
try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
From this reading A search revealed nothing.
settlementnounUS /ˈsetəlmənt/
a body of people who settle far from home but maintain ties with their homeland; inhabitants remain nationals of their home state but are not literally under the home state's system of government
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
tunenounUS /tuːn/
a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
precisely as stated
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading No particular tune, but it was surely the piano notes that had been distinctly and repeatedly heard.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading A few nights after their settlement, the new family were startled by hearing the piano sound!
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading "O, what a pretty cat!" exclaimed a child of the new occupant of the haunted house, on discovering the domestic animal which the late possessor had left.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
you'll
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Yes; and she looks so very domestic and knowing, she may stay, if no one comes for her, and you'll have her for a playfellow," replied the mother.
