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The Ranch at the Wolverine
The Ranch at the Wolverine

Chapter XXVII

Cover illustration for The Ranch at the Wolverine
Context Illustration Reading 1/52 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.
The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.
Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.
Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.
A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.
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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 Ranch at the Wolverine

Chapter XXVII

Reading 1/52 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.
Line 2
The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.
Line 3
Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.
Line 4
Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.
Line 5
A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

Learner Dictionary

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

Along preposition US /əˈlɔːŋ/

following the length of something from one end toward the other

From this reading “MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

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

From this reading “Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.”

Here noun US /here/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.”

Himself pronoun US /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading “A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.”

Last noun US /last/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.”

Life noun US /life/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.”

Next noun US /next/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.”

Nothing pronoun US /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading “Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.”

Passed noun US /passed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.”

Seemed noun US /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.”

Since preposition US /sɪns/

from a time in the past until now

From this reading “Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.”

Though conjunction US /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading “Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.”

Through noun US /ˈthrough/

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

From this reading “MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.”

Wind noun US /wind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.”

Yet conjunction US /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading “Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.”

All words in this reading · 87

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 Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

alongprepositionUS /əˈlɔːŋ/

following the length of something from one end toward the other

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

away

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

bed

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

big

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

Billy

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

branches

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

cattle

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

changed

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

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

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

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

Cove

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

creeping

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

down

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

dry

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

empty

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

far

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

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

fattening

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

fed

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

felt

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

few

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

forlorn

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

fruit

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

galloped

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

gate

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

gorge

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

grunted

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

herenounUS /here/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

hog

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

hours

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

lastnounUS /last/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

led

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

lifenounUS /life/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

lifted

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

Louise

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

MARTHY

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

meadow

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

more

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

much

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

naked

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

nextnounUS /next/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

NotadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

NothingpronounUS /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

orchard

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

passednounUS /passed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

past

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

place

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

rather

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

rattling

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

river

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

saw

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

see

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

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

seemednounUS /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

sinceprepositionUS /sɪns/

from a time in the past until now

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

slid

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

straw

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

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

stride

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

taken

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading A few cattle fed in the meadow next the river, a fattening hog lifted himself from his bed of straw and grunted at them as they passed.

thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

throughnounUS /ˈthrough/

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

trees

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

twenty-four

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

up

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

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

vaguely

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

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading Nothing was changed, though, as far as she could see.

way

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

From this reading MARTHY Billy Louise led the way down the gorge, through the meadow, and along the orchard to the little gate.

windnounUS /wind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading The Cove seemed empty and rather forlorn, with the wind creeping up the river and rattling the dry branches of the naked fruit trees.

yetconjunctionUS /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading Not much more than twenty-four hours had slid into the past since Billy Louise had galloped away from the place, yet she felt vaguely that life had taken a big stride here since she last saw it.