used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
in the past
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
the two together, not just one
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
conceived of or imagined or hoped for
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
divisible by two
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
at any time
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
beyond what is ordinary or usual; highly unusual or exceptional or remarkable
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
financiernounUS /ˌfɪnənˈsɪr/
a person skilled in large scale financial transactions
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
gossipsnounUS /ˈɡɑːsəps/
plural of “gossip” — light informal conversation for social occasions
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
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 Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
learntverbUS /lɜːrnt/
inflected form of “learn” — gain knowledge or skills
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
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 In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
marvellousadjectiveUS /ˈmɑːrvələs/
extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
no person; not anyone
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
many times at short intervals
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
past form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
a relationship between two lovers
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
Samuel'snounUS /ˈsæmjuːlz/
possessive form of “samuel” — (Old Testament) Hebrew prophet and judge who anointed Saul as king
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
except for; apart from
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
an extended social group having a distinctive cultural and economic organization
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
an event that accomplishes its intended purpose
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
past form of “suffer” — undergo or be subjected to
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Nobody knew the story save himself, and it had never passed his lips.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading In those days long ago both of them had been poor, and had suffered in consequence.
tittle-tattlenoun
light informal conversation for social occasions
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
tragicadjectiveUS /ˈtrædʒɪk/
very sad; especially involving grief or death or destruction
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
a fact that has been verified
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
underlayverb
raise or support (the level of printing) by inserting a piece of paper or cardboard under the type
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His brother Samuel's romance was even more tragic.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
which person or people
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading What a sensation would be produced if they ever learnt the truth!
inflected form of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading The society gossips who so often wrote their tittle-tattle about him never dreamed the strange story of the life of the great financier, nor the extraordinary romance that underlay his marvellous success.
