used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
surrounded by; in the company of
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
of short duration or distance
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or split
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
the particular occupation for which you are trained
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
defeatnounUS /dɪˈfiːt/
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
(plural) the deepest and most remote part
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
bring shame or dishonor upon
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
embarrassedadjectiveUS /ɪmˈberəst/
feeling or caused to feel ill at ease or self-conscious or ashamed
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
endedadjectiveUS /ˈendəd/
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
a state of high honor
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
destroyed or killed
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Much had happened since then.
past form of “happen” — come to pass
From this reading Much had happened since then.
heightsnounUS /haɪts/
a high place
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
immediately past
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
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 It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
an artist of consummate skill
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
a formally arranged gathering
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Much had happened since then.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
prefects
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
ranksnounUS /ræŋks/
plural of “rank” — a row or line of people (especially soldiers or police) standing abreast of one another
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
risenadjectiveUS /ˈrɪzən/
(of e.g. celestial bodies) above the horizon
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
Identical; not different.
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
sinceprepositionUS /sɪns/
from a time in the past until now
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
a word or expression used for some particular thing
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
used when the people doing the action are also its object
From this reading The ranks of the prefects themselves had been broken, and the master himself had ended his brief career amongst his boys.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Much had happened since then.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The house had gone down into the depths and risen to the heights.
a successful ending of a struggle or contest
From this reading There had come disgrace and glory, defeat and victory.
whileconjunctionUS /waɪl/
during the time that
From this reading It seemed a long while since their first embarrassed meeting in that same room at the beginning of last term.
