used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
(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 She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
awfuladjectiveUS /ˈɑːfəl/
exceptionally bad or displeasing
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
treated by heating to a high temperature but below the melting or fusing point
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
an alert cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
dimlyadverbUS /ˈdɪmli/
in a dim indistinct manner
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
fearful expectation or anticipation
From this reading Beyond the window, looking in upon her, and knocking, knocking, knocking, stood the figure of her dread.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
more distant in especially space or time
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
a diagram or picture illustrating textual material
From this reading Beyond the window, looking in upon her, and knocking, knocking, knocking, stood the figure of her dread.
past form of “flash” — gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
hailverbUS /heɪl/
praise vociferously
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
knockingnounUS /ˈnɑːkɪŋ/
the sound of knocking (as on a door or in an engine or bearing)
From this reading Beyond the window, looking in upon her, and knocking, knocking, knocking, stood the figure of her dread.
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
LIFTINGverbUS /ˈlɪftɪŋ/
-ing form of “lift” — raise from a lower to a higher position
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
abrupt electric discharge from cloud to cloud or from cloud to earth accompanied by the emission of light
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading Beyond the window, looking in upon her, and knocking, knocking, knocking, stood the figure of her dread.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
luridnessnoun
the journalistic use of subject matter that appeals to vulgar tastes
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
MASKverbUS /mæsk/
hide under a false appearance
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
numbnessnounUS /ˈnʌmnəs/
partial or total lack of sensation in a part of the body; a symptom of nerve damage or dysfunction
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
panenounUS /peɪn/
sheet glass cut in shapes for windows or doors
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
panicnounUS /ˈpænɪk/
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
rappedverbUS /ræpt/
inflected form of “rap” — strike sharply
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
rushingnounUS /ˈrʌʃɪŋ/
(American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
only a very short time before
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had fled away to the farther end of the room in her panic.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Beyond the window, looking in upon her, and knocking, knocking, knocking, stood the figure of her dread.
behave violently, as if in state of a great anger
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
swoonverbUS /swuːn/
pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
in or at that place or location
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading She had turned the lamp low at the beginning of the storm, and now it burned so dimly that it scarcely gave out any light at all.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading THE LIFTING OF THE MASK Out of a curious numbness that had almost been a swoon there came to her the consciousness of a hand that rapped and rapped and rapped upon the pane.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Beyond the window, the lightning flashed with an awful luridness upon the rushing hail.
