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The Vicar's Daughter
The Vicar's Daughter

Chapter XXX

Cover illustration for The Vicar's Daughter
Context Illustration Reading 1/34 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.
But the clouds returned after the rain.
It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.
While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.
Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Vicar's Daughter

Chapter XXX

Reading 1/34 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.
Line 2
But the clouds returned after the rain.
Line 3
It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.
Line 4
While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.
Line 5
Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

Learner Dictionary

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

About preposition US /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

AFTER preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.”

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

Doctor noun US /doctor/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.”

During preposition US /ˈdʊrɪŋ/

all through a period, or at some point within it

From this reading “It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.”

Even noun US /even/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

Hand noun US /hand/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.”

Nothing pronoun US /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading “While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.”

Returned noun US /ˈreturned/

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

From this reading “But the clouds returned after the rain.”

Something pronoun US /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

Thought noun US /thought/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.”

Went noun US /went/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.”

While conjunction US /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading “While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.”

Yet conjunction US /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading “While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.”

All words in this reading · 80

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 Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

AFTERprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.

ahead

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

better

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But the clouds returned after the rain.

CLOUDS

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

From this reading THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.

delicacies

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

disappoint

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

doctornounUS /doctor/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

doing

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

duringprepositionUS /ˈdʊrɪŋ/

all through a period, or at some point within it

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

easily

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

EvennounUS /even/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

expense

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

expenses

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

family

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

few

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

get

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

got

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

hand

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

happened

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

how

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

ill

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

illness

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

income

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

invariably

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

living

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

making

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

many

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

money

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

mouth

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

nothingpronounUS /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

often

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

only

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

pay

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

Percivale's

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

race

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

RAIN

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

From this reading THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.

rapidly

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

returnednounUS /ˈreturned/

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

From this reading But the clouds returned after the rain.

shouldmodal verbUS /ʃʊd/

used to say what is right, expected, or advisable

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

somethingpronounUS /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

taken

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading THE CLOUDS AFTER THE RAIN.

thoughtnounUS /thought/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

understood

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

up

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

uspronounUS /ʌs/

the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

usual

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

vanished

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

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

wepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

wentnounUS /went/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

WhileconjunctionUS /waɪl/

during the time that

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.

willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading It will be easily understood how the little money we had in hand should have rapidly vanished during Percivale's illness.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

yards

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

From this reading Even up to the time when he had been taken ill, we had been doing little better than living from hand to mouth; for as often as we thought income was about to get a few yards ahead in the race with expense, something invariably happened to disappoint us.

yetconjunctionUS /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading While he was making nothing, the expenses of the family went on as usual; and not that only, but many little delicacies had to be got for him, and the doctor was yet to pay.