used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/
later than; following
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
plural of “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
clockworknounUS /ˈklɑːkwɜːrk/
any mechanism of geared wheels that is driven by a coiled spring; resembles the works of a mechanical clock
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
corpsnounUS /kɔːr/
an army unit usually consisting of two or more divisions and their support
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
a female human offspring
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
earlyadjectiveUS /ˈɜːrli/
at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
eldestadjectiveUS /ˈeldəst/
first in order of birth
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
entertainverbUS /ˌentərˈteɪn/
provide entertainment for
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
at any time
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
a social unit living together
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
the cardinal number that is the sum of fourteen and one
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
Hilcrest
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
housekeepernounUS /ˈhaʊskiːpər/
a servant who is employed to perform domestic task in a household
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
largeadjectiveUS /lɑːrdʒ/
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
joined in matrimony
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
plural of “matter” — a vaguely specified concern
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
medicinenounUS /ˈmedəsən/
the branches of medical science that deal with nonsurgical techniques
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
Merideth
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
and nothing more
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
precisionnounUS /priˈsɪʒən/
the quality of being reproducible in amount or performance
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
a protective covering that covers or forms the top of a building
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
plural of “servant” — a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
sinceprepositionUS /sɪns/
from a time in the past until now
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
a detailed critical inspection
From this reading Harry, the eldest brother, had early left the home roof to study medicine.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
twenty-twonounUS /ˈtwentituː/
the cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-one and one
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was something of the precision of clockwork in matters and things at Hilcrest.
well-trained
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A large corps of well-trained servants in charge of an excellent housekeeper left Mrs. Merideth free to go, and come, and entertain as she liked.
WidowedadjectiveUS /ˈwɪdoʊd/
single because of death of the spouse
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
a late time of life
From this reading For fifteen years now she had been mistress of Hilcrest, ever since her mother had died, in fact.
used of the younger of two persons of the same name especially used to distinguish a son from his father
From this reading Widowed herself at twenty-two after a year of married life, and the only daughter in a family of four children, she had been like a second mother to her two younger brothers.
