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The Mythological Zoo
The Mythological Zoo

Chapter I

Cover illustration for The Mythological Zoo
Context Illustration Reading 1/19 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?
The question fills me with despair.
It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.
Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."
And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Mythological Zoo

Chapter I

Reading 1/19 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?
Line 2
The question fills me with despair.
Line 3
It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.
Line 4
Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."
Line 5
And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

After preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."”

Being auxiliary verb US /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading “And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

Distress noun US /dɪˈstrɛs/

extreme sadness or suffering

From this reading “It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.”

Must modal verb US /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading “It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.”

Question noun US /ˈquestion/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “The question fills me with despair.”

Stand noun US /stand/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."”

Thing noun US /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."”

Whenever conjunction US /weˈnevər/

at any time that; every time that

From this reading “Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."”

All words in this reading · 73

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

Affectionate

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

All

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

aware

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

Band

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

Barron

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

cause

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

caused

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

Charles

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

coaxed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

coil

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

couldn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

curling

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

despair

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The question fills me with despair.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

disaster

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

distressnounUS /dɪˈstrɛs/

extreme sadness or suffering

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

doauxiliary verbUS /duː/

used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

dress

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

eachdeterminerUS /iːtʃ/

every one of two or more people or things, taken separately

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

Elwyn

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

end

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

endless

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

eye

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

fills

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The question fills me with despair.

finally

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

freezing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

hair

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

head

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

How

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading The question fills me with despair.

Medusa

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

met

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

music

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

New

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

OnprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

Passing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

petrify

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

questionnounUS /ˈquestion/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading The question fills me with despair.

Regard

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

Scribner's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

separate

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

ShepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

snakes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

Sons

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

sore

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

spit

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

stand

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

sway

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

ThatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading The question fills me with despair.

thingnounUS /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading It must have caused her sore distress That head of curling snakes to dress.

toil

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

WhatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

WheneverconjunctionUS /weˈnevər/

at any time that; every time that

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

whompronounUS /huːm/

the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

WithprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?

woman

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And, being woman and aware Of such disaster to her hair, What _could_ she do but petrify All whom she met, with freezing eye?

Wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

writhe

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Whenever after endless toil She coaxed it finally to coil, The music of a Passing Band Would cause each separate hair to stand On end and sway and writhe and spit,-- She couldn't "do a thing with it."

York

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading New York - Charles Scribner's Sons Elwyn Barron With Affectionate Regard How did Medusa do her hair?