used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
boatswainnounUS /ˈboʊtsweɪn/
a petty officer on a merchant ship who controls the work of other seamen
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
of short duration or distance
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
cuddynounUS /ˈkʌdi/
the galley or pantry of a small ship
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
the act of departing
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
any physical damage to the body caused by violence or accident or fracture etc.
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He sounded the well and made six inches.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
plural of “inch” — a unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot
From this reading He sounded the well and made six inches.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
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 "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading He sounded the well and made six inches.
main-deck
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
not any; not one
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
and nothing more
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
pliedverbUS /plaɪd/
inflected form of “ply” — give what is desired or needed, especially support, food or sustenance
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
pumpverbUS /pʌmp/
operate like a pump; move up and down, like a handle or a pedal
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
pumpsnounUS /pʌmps/
plural of “pump” — a mechanical device that moves fluid or gas by pressure or suction
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
quitted
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
From this reading He sounded the well and made six inches.
past form of “sound” — appear in a certain way
From this reading He sounded the well and made six inches.
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
There's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
they'll
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "There's only two inches left that we can get out of her," said he; "and they'll do no harm."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
(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 He sounded the well and made six inches.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading On which we quitted the main-deck and came into the cuddy.
in the company of; together with
From this reading We plied them, with a brief spell between, and then my arms fell to my side, and I told the boatswain I could pump no more.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading There being but two of us now to work the pumps, it was more than we could do to keep them going.
