used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
backwardadverbUS /ˈbækwərd/
at or to or toward the back or rear
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
treated by heating to a high temperature but below the melting or fusing point
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
put or send forth
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading Was he dead?
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
the property created by the space between two objects or points
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
drunkenadjectiveUS /ˈdrʌŋkən/
given to or marked by the consumption of alcohol
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
dwarfedverbUS /dwɔːrft/
past form of “dwarf” — make appear small by comparison
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
plural of “figure” — a diagram or picture illustrating textual material
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
start firing a weapon
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
brought together in one place
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
HORRORSnounUS /ˈhɔːrərz/
plural of “horror” — intense and profound fear
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
LAGOONnounUS /ləˈɡuːn/
a body of water cut off from a larger body by a reef of sand or coral
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Phil wondered about the man whom Ramirez had shot down.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
Phil
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
Ramirez
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Phil wondered about the man whom Ramirez had shot down.
ravinenounUS /rəˈviːn/
a deep narrow steep-sided valley (especially one formed by running water)
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
move upward
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
established or decided beyond dispute or doubt
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading Phil wondered about the man whom Ramirez had shot down.
sinisteradjectiveUS /ˈsɪnɪstər/
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
sprawledverbUS /sprɔːld/
past form of “sprawl” — sit or lie with one's limbs spread out
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Then he turned and cast one backward glance at the sinister group gathered about the fire.
untilprepositionUS /ənˈtɪl/
up to a particular time
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
Wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Was he dead?
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading THE HORRORS OF THE LAGOON Not until he had reached the rise of ground from which he had first looked down into the ravine did Phil pause.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Phil wondered about the man whom Ramirez had shot down.
in the company of; together with
From this reading They seemed to have settled down into a drunken sleep, for their figures, dwarfed with distance, were sprawled upon the ground and the fire had burned low.
past form of “wonder” — have a wish or desire to know something
From this reading Phil wondered about the man whom Ramirez had shot down.
