aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
convictsnounUS /ˈkɑːnvɪkts/
plural of “convict” — a person serving a sentence in a jail or prison
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
divisible by two
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
apart from; not including
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
holidaysnounUS /ˈhɑːlədeɪz/
plural of “holiday” — leisure time away from work devoted to rest or pleasure
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
organising
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
PERFORMANCEnounUS /pərˈfɔːrməns/
a dramatic or musical entertainment
From this reading THE PERFORMANCE.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
(of games) engaged in
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
representationnounUS /ˌreprəzenˈteɪʃən/
a presentation to the mind in the form of an idea or image
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
carry out
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
takenadjectiveUS /ˈteɪkən/
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE PERFORMANCE.
theatricaladjectiveUS /θiˈætrɪkəl/
of or relating to the theater
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
used when the people doing the action are also its object
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
one of three equal parts of a divisible whole
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading On the evening of the third day of the holidays took place our first theatrical performance.
a source of difficulty
From this reading There had been much trouble about organising it.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading We did not even know what was to be played.
which person or people
From this reading But those who were to act had taken everything upon themselves, and the other convicts knew nothing about the representation except that it was to take place.
