used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
Alick
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
(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 Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
amongprepositionUS /əˈmʌŋ/
surrounded by; in the middle of a group
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
attemptsnounUS /əˈtempts/
plural of “attempt” — earnest and conscientious activity intended to do or accomplish something
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
cheerfulnessnounUS /ˈtʃɪrfəlnəs/
the quality of being cheerful and dispelling gloom
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
period extending from Dec. 24 to Jan. 6
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
inflected form of “eat” — take in solid food
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
(Old Testament) Adam's wife in Judeo-Christian mythology: the first woman and mother of the human race; God created Eve from Adam's rib and placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
divisible by two
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
set up or found
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
funeralnounUS /ˈfjuːnərəl/
a ceremony at which a dead person is buried or cremated
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
usually; as a rule
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
depressingly dark
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
a power to affect persons or events especially power based on prestige etc
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
M'Carthy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
the food served and eaten at one time
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
mirthnounUS /mɜːrθ/
great merriment
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
not any; not one
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
the state of being present; current existence
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
prevailedverbUS /prɪˈveɪld/
past form of “prevail” — be larger in number, quantity, power, status or importance
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
ProctornounUS /ˈprɑːktər/
someone who supervises (an examination)
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
proctor'snounUS /ˈprɑːktərz/
possessive form of “proctor” — someone who supervises (an examination)
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
bring forth or yield
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
raise the level or amount of something
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
a string of words satisfying the grammatical rules of a language
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
plural of “son” — a male human offspring
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
the vital principle or animating force within living things
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
having succeeded or being marked by a favorable outcome
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading --Sentence of the Proctor and His Sons.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Even M'Carthy himself felt the influence of the spirit that prevailed, and found that all his attempts to produce cheerfulness or mirth among them were by no means successful.
usualadjectiveUS /ˈjuːʒəwəl/
occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
precisely as stated
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Breakfast in the proctor's, on the morning of Christmas Eve, was eaten as if it had been a funeral meal.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The proctor himself could not raise his spirits, which were generally high and cheerful.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading John and Alick were much more serious than usual; and were it not for the presence of M'Carthy, the meal in question would have been a very gloomy one indeed.
