used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
AboveprepositionUS /əˈbʌv/
higher than, or over, something
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
anew
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
babelnounUS /ˈbæbəl/
(Genesis 11:1-11) a tower built by Noah's descendants (probably in Babylon) who intended it to reach up to heaven; God foiled them by confusing their language so they could no longer understand one another
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “There’s going to be a storm.”
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
DERBYnounUS /ˈdɜːrbi/
a felt hat that is round and hard with a narrow brim
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Gilbert did not hear the voice.
drabadjectiveUS /dræb/
lacking in liveliness or charm or surprise
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
a degree on the Fahrenheit scale of temperature
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
GilbertnounUS /ˈɡɪlbərt/
a unit of magnetomotive force equal to 0.7958 ampere-turns
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
gleamingnounUS /ˈɡliːmɪŋ/
a flash of light (especially reflected light)
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
the act of departing
From this reading “There’s going to be a storm.”
coins made of gold
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading Gilbert did not hear the voice.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
locateverbUS /ˈloʊkeɪt/
discover the location of; determine the place of; find by searching or examining
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
MelodynounUS /ˈmelədi/
a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
musiciannounUS /mjuːˈzɪʃən/
someone who plays a musical instrument (as a profession)
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Gilbert did not hear the voice.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
(of games) engaged in
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
make a loud noise, as of wind, water, or vehicles
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
shoddyadjectiveUS /ˈʃɑːdi/
made of inferior workmanship and materials
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
sorrowfuladjectiveUS /ˈsɑːroʊfəl/
experiencing or marked by or expressing sorrow especially that associated with irreparable loss
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
Standerton
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
behave violently, as if in state of a great anger
From this reading “There’s going to be a storm.”
strainingnounUS /ˈstreɪnɪŋ/
an intense or violent exertion
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
SUNSTAR'S
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
tenselyadverbUS /ˈtensli/
in a tense manner
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
in or at that place or location
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
There's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “There’s going to be a storm.”
threadverbUS /θred/
to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
unseenadjectiveUS /ənˈsiːn/
not seen or perceived
From this reading It was the “Melody in F” that the unseen musician played.
vagrantnounUS /ˈveɪɡrənt/
a wanderer who has no established residence or visible means of support
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
vanishingnounUS /ˈvænɪʃɪŋ/
a sudden or mysterious disappearance
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Gilbert did not hear the voice.
plural of “voice” — the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading SUNSTAR’S DERBY There it was again!
woofnounUS /wuːf/
the yarn woven across the warp yarn in weaving
From this reading Above the babel of sound, the low roar of voices, soft and sorrowful, now heard, now lost, a vagrant thread of gold caught in the drab woof of shoddy life gleaming and vanishing.… Gilbert Standerton sat tensely straining to locate the sound.
