used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
airsnounUS /erz/
affected manners intended to impress others
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
(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 That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
baffing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
that part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher nervous centers; enclosed within the skull; continuous with the spinal cord
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
deliciousadjectiveUS /dɪˈlɪʃəs/
greatly pleasing or entertaining
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
apart from; not including
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
flashingnounUS /ˈflæʃɪŋ/
a short vivid experience
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
ghostsnounUS /ɡoʊsts/
plural of “ghost” — a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
Janey's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
lainverbUS /leɪn/
inflected form of “lie” — be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
the act of hearing attentively
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
of an obscure nature
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
Nigel's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
night-jar
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
not any; not one
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
many times at short intervals
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/
above and across; more than
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
patchnounUS /pætʃ/
a small contrasting part of something
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
inflected form of “ring” — sound loudly and sonorously
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
restlessadjectiveUS /ˈrestləs/
worried and uneasy
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
ripplingnounUS /ˈrɪpəlɪŋ/
a small wave on the surface of a liquid
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
spinningnounUS /ˈspɪnɪŋ/
creating thread
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
plural of “star” — (astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
a wide scarf worn about their shoulders by women
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
the warmest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then suddenly a bell rang in his brain.
in or at that place or location
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
in the direction of
From this reading Towards morning a delicious sense of cold stole over Nigel's sleep.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
(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 IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
whirringnounUS /ˈwɜːrɪŋ/
sound of something in rapid motion
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure
From this reading Soft airs seemed to be baffing him, rippling round him, and there seemed to be water--water and wind.
windlessadjective
without or almost without wind
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
window-view
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That night all was windless silence, and there was no motion in the dark patch of window-view, except the flashing of the stars.
the trees and other plants in a large densely wooded area
From this reading IN THE RAIN From Nigel's bed as well as Janey's one could see woods, and in summer he had often lain listening to the night-jar in them--that mysterious whirring, dull and restless, as if ghosts were spinning.
