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 This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
accomplishment
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
addition
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
advantages
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/
later than; following
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
ago
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
aims
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
all
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
amongprepositionUS /əˈmʌŋ/
surrounded by; in the middle of a group
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
andeterminerUS /æn/
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
artist
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
artistic
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
bandsmen
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
barrel-organist
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
beauxiliary verbUS /biː/
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
best
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
bodies
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
byprepositionUS /baɪ/
showing who or what does the action
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
bygone
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
certain
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
change
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
Characters
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
children
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
church
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
clergy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
combined
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
common
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
concerned
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
congregation
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
control
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
Crusted
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
curtail
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
customs
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
daughter
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
descriptions
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
despiteprepositionUS /dɪˈspaɪt/
although something is true; in spite of
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
direct
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
disappearednounUS /ˈdisappeared/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
displacement
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
distance
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
doings
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
doubt
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
dozen
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
ecclesiastical
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
established
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
executive
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
extinguish
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
fairly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
Few
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
fifty
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
firstnounUS /first/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
footnounUS /foot/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
fromprepositionUS /frʌm/
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
full-grown
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
grown-up
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
halfnounUS /half/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
hand
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
harmonium
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
hasauxiliary verbUS /hæz/
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
homes
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
important
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
inclined
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
installing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
instrumentalists
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
intended
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
interest
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
interests
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
isolated
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
itpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
keen
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
lay
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
less
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
limited
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
makenounUS /make/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
Mellstock
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
more
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
mostly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
musical
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
musicians
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
nodeterminerUS /noʊ/
not any; not one
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
now
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
numerous
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
occupied
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
officially
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
officials
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
often
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
onprepositionUS /ɑːn/
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
OnepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
orchestral
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
organist
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
other
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
outcome
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
parishioners
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
parson's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
personages
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
picture
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
places
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
plan
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
player
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
players
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
pointnounUS /pɔɪnt/
the main matter or purpose being discussed
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
professed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
Quire
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
regret
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
result
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
routine
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
school-children
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
school-teacher
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
secured
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
similar
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
singers
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
single
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
sixty
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
some
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
staying
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
story
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
stultify
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
Sunday
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
supplementary
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
takenounUS /take/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
tasteverbUS /teɪst/
To perceive flavor through the mouth.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
ten
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
tended
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
thesedeterminerUS /ðiːz/
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading One is inclined to regret the displacement of these ecclesiastical bandsmen by an isolated organist (often at first a barrel-organist) or harmonium player; and despite certain advantages in point of control and accomplishment which were, no doubt, secured by installing the single artist, the change has tended to stultify the professed aims of the clergy, its direct result being to curtail and extinguish the interest of parishioners in church doings.
ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
throughnounUS /ˈthrough/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
toilsome
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
Tower
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
true
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
trying
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
Two
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
UnderprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading Under the old plan, from half a dozen to ten full-grown players, in addition to the numerous more or less grown-up singers, were officially occupied with the Sunday routine, and concerned in trying their best to make it an artistic outcome of the combined musical taste of the congregation.
union
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
villages
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
ways
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
weathers
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
week
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
west-gallery
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
wife
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With a musical executive limited, as it mostly is limited now, to the parson’s wife or daughter and the school-children, or to the school-teacher and the children, an important union of interests has disappeared.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
years
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This story of the Mellstock Quire and its old established west-gallery musicians, with some supplementary descriptions of similar officials in _Two on a Tower, A Few Crusted Characters_, and other places, is intended to be a fairly true picture, at first hand, of the personages, ways, and customs which were common among such orchestral bodies in the villages of fifty or sixty years ago.
zest
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The zest of these bygone instrumentalists must have been keen and staying to take them, as it did, on foot every Sunday after a toilsome week, through all weathers, to the church, which often lay at a distance from their homes.
