used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
any thing at all
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
bucketnounUS /ˈbʌkət/
a roughly cylindrical vessel that is open at the top
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
capenounUS /keɪp/
a strip of land projecting into a body of water
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
chairmannounUS /ˈtʃermən/
the officer who presides at the meetings of an organization
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
Chubnoun
European freshwater game fish with a thick spindle-shaped body
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
a small house with a single story
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
don't
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
a trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group; occurs with yttrium
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
HASauxiliary verbUS /hæz/
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He--he thinks it’s a joke!”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
IMPROVEMENTnounUS /ˌɪmˈpruːvmənt/
a change for the better; progress in development
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
invertedadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈvɜːrtɪd/
being in such a position that top and bottom are reversed
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
it's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He--he thinks it’s a joke!”
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading He--he thinks it’s a joke!”
and nothing more
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
engage in
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
mamanounUS /ˈmɑːmə/
informal terms for a mother
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
a formally arranged gathering
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
not any; not one
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
to give an account or representation of in words
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
Roy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
SETBACKnounUS /ˈsetbæk/
an unfortunate happening that hinders or impedes; something that is thwarting or frustrating
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
term of address for a man
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
an extended social group having a distinctive cultural and economic organization
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
subsidingnounUS /səbˈsaɪdɪŋ/
a gradual sinking to a lower level
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
a light evening meal; served in early evening if dinner is at midday or served late in the evening at bedtime
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
express in words
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
plural of “think” — an instance of deliberate thinking
From this reading He--he thinks it’s a joke!”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “Papa told mama about it at supper.
unbuttoning
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
(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 “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
which person or people
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
in the company of; together with
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
Damaged or thinned by continuous use.
From this reading “Well, you don’t have to tell me anything,” said Harry, who had just entered and was unbuttoning the cape which she had worn across from the Cottage.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading THE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY HAS A SETBACK “You tell him,” said Roy, subsiding on to an inverted bucket with a sigh.
you're
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
you've
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, sir,” answered Chub; “you’re chairman and you’ve got to make the report to the--er--meeting.”
