used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
with anxiety or apprehension
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
past form of “approach” — move towards
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
clutchedverbUS /klʌtʃt/
past form of “clutch” — take hold of; grab
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
the men and women who man a vehicle (ship, aircraft, etc.)
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
cause to herd, drive, or crowd together
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
decreasing in amount or degree
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
flapverbUS /flæp/
move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and falling motion
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
fragmentsnounUS /ˈfræɡmənts/
plural of “fragment” — a piece broken off or cut off of something else
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
guy-ropes
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
plural of “head” — the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
past form of “kill” — cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
not in physical motion
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/
above and across; more than
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
the act of pulling; applying force to move something toward or with you
From this reading Pulling open the flap of the tent, he looked anxiously inside.
reeledverbUS /riːld/
past form of “reel” — walk as if unable to control one's movements
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
inflected form of “sink” — fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
past form of “seize” — take hold of; grab
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
(used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
the feeling of distress and disbelief that you have when something bad happens accidentally
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
the state of being asleep
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
steppingverbUS /ˈstepɪŋ/
inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
plural of “stone” — a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
(of muscles) relieved of stiffness by stretching
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
happening without warning or in a short space of time
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
push forcefully
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
male cat
From this reading A sudden fear seized on Tom that the shock had killed them as they lay sleeping, and he reeled and clutched one of the guy-ropes to keep from falling.
Tom'snounUS /tɑːmz/
possessive form of “tom” — male cat
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading There lay the crew, to a man, stretched upon the ground, motionless.
villagersnounUS /ˈvɪlɪdʒərz/
plural of “villager” — one who has lived in a village most of their life
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The next minute the crowd of villagers had arrived, and several heads were thrust inside the tent.
the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
From this reading Tom’s heart sank as he approached the tent, stepping over stones and fragments of wood that lay all about.
