used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
Billabongnoun
a stagnant pool of water in the bed of a stream that flows intermittently
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
boxesnounUS /ˈbɑːksəz/
plural of “box” — a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
cane-brake
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
chorusnounUS /ˈkɔːrəs/
any utterance produced simultaneously by a group
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
crackledverbUS /ˈkrækəld/
past form of “crackle” — make a crackling sound
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
dozedverbUS /doʊzd/
past form of “doze” — sleep lightly or for a short period of time
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
free from liquid or moisture; lacking natural or normal moisture or depleted of water; or no longer wet
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
faintlyadverbUS /ˈfeɪntli/
to a faint degree or weakly perceived
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
gauntadjectiveUS /ɡɔːnt/
very thin especially from disease or hunger or cold
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
not solid; having a space or gap or cavity
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
humverbUS /hʌm/
sing with closed lips
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
insectnounUS /ˈɪnsekt/
small air-breathing arthropod
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
plural of “leaf” — the main organ of photosynthesis and transpiration in higher plants
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
organicadjectiveUS /ɔːrˈɡænɪk/
relating or belonging to the class of chemical compounds having a carbon basis
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
reedsnounUS /riːdz/
plural of “reed” — tall woody perennial grasses with hollow slender stems especially of the genera Arundo and Phragmites
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
rustled
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
plural of “shadow” — shade within clear boundaries
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
sharpernounUS /ˈʃɑːrpər/
a professional card player who makes a living by cheating at card games
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
woolly usually horned ruminant mammal related to the goat
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
inflected form of “sleep” — be asleep
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading In the hollow of the Billabong some dry reeds, like a cane-brake, rustled faintly in the air.
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
underneathprepositionUS /ˌʌndərˈniːθ/
directly under, often hidden by what is above
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
uneasilyadverbUS /əˈniːzəli/
with anxiety or apprehension
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
precisely as stated
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading Far away, on every side, the sheep called uneasily for water.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
whileconjunctionUS /waɪl/
during the time that
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
which person or people
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
WilsonnounUS /ˈwɪlsən/
author of the first novel by an African American that was published in the United States (1808-1870)
From this reading And Wilson, who had not really slept for days, lay down upon the earth and dozed, while the star shadows of the gaunt thin boxes moved a foot.
in the company of; together with
From this reading What had seemed silence grew into a very chorus, organic with the earth.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading The leaves of the trees crackled, and underneath these sharper sounds was the hum of the insect world.
