Chapter I · Struck in the Night

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading For a second the stillness was absolute.

perfect or complete or pure

From this reading For a second the stillness was absolute.

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

separated or at a distance in place or position or time

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

not in a state of sleep; completely conscious

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

earlier than; in front of

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

move up and down repeatedly

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

an informal term for a British policeman

From this reading “Bobby!

a long trough for feeding cattle

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

-ing form of “crouch” — bend one's back forward from the waist on down

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

absence of light or illumination

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

lacking in liveliness or animation

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

plural of “ear” — the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

divisible by two

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading For a second the stillness was absolute.

set up or found

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

staying power

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

produced by a manufacturing process

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

an area that is approximately central within some larger region

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

plural of “muscle” — one of the contractile organs of the body

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

a loud low dull continuous noise

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

From this reading For a second the stillness was absolute.

past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

small crude shelter used as a dwelling

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

distribute or disperse widely

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

not in physical motion

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

(poetic) tranquil silence

From this reading For a second the stillness was absolute.

a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.

speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords

From this reading Then from the other side of the small room came a hoarse, shaking whisper:

having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

in the company of; together with

From this reading With muscles tense and legs spread wide apart, Bob Bainbridge found himself crouching in the middle of the office shanty.

but in spite of that

From this reading It was yet dark, and in his ears still seemed to sound the dull, rumbling detonation which had made him leap from the bunk before he was even half awake.