used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
in the past
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
behindprepositionUS /bɪˈhaɪnd/
at or toward the back of something
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
BelfastnounUS /ˈbelfæst/
capital and largest city of Northern Ireland; the center of Protestantism in Northern Ireland
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
bull-necked
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
discountedverbUS /ˈdɪskaʊntɪd/
past form of “discount” — bar from attention or consideration
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
effectiveadjectiveUS /ɪˈfektɪv/
producing or capable of producing an intended result or having a striking effect
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
opinion or judgment
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
a competitor thought likely to win
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
ferociouslyadverbUS /fərˈoʊʃɪsli/
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading He grunted thrice—ferociously.
being satisfactory or in satisfactory condition
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
enclose in or as if in a frame
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
gaitnounUS /ɡeɪt/
the rate of moving (especially walking or running)
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
gruntnounUS /ɡrʌnt/
the short low gruff noise of the kind made by hogs
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
gruntedverbUS /ˈɡrʌntɪd/
past form of “grunt” — issue a grunting, low, animal-like noise
From this reading He grunted thrice—ferociously.
gruntingverbUS /ˈɡrʌntɪŋ/
-ing form of “grunt” — issue a grunting, low, animal-like noise
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He grunted thrice—ferociously.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
jerkyadjectiveUS /ˈdʒɜːrki/
lacking a steady rhythm
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
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 They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
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 But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
the force of workers available
From this reading But its effect had been long ago discounted by the men.
menacingadjectiveUS /ˈmenəsɪŋ/
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
mimickedverbUS /ˈmɪmɪkt/
inflected form of “mimic” — imitate (a person or manner), especially for satirical effect
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
uttered with a trill
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
sardonicadjectiveUS /sɑːrˈdɑːnɪk/
disdainfully or ironically humorous; scornful and mocking
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
seamedadjective
having or joined by a seam or seams
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
sentencesnounUS /ˈsentənsəz/
plural of “sentence” — a string of words satisfying the grammatical rules of a language
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
make steady
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
thriceadverbUS /θraɪs/
three times
From this reading He grunted thrice—ferociously.
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
utterancenounUS /ˈʌtərəns/
the use of uttered sounds for auditory communication
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
which person or people
From this reading They liked him; Belfast—who was a favourite, and knew it—mimicked him, not quite behind his back.
in the company of; together with
From this reading It was a fine, effective grunt that went well with his menacing utterance, with his heavy, bull-necked frame, his jerky, rolling gait; with his big, seamed face, his steady eyes, and sardonic mouth.
the words that are spoken
From this reading He had that trick of grunting so between his words and at the end of sentences.
