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adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
afternoonnounUS /ˈafternoon/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
airs
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
attributed
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
byprepositionUS /baɪ/
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
chair
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
chairs
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From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
days
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From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
deep
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From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
degeneration
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
distressedadjectiveUS /dɪˈstrɛst/
suffering from pain, danger, or serious difficulty
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
exceptprepositionUS /ɪkˈsept/
apart from; not including
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
fire
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
greatnounUS /great/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
hepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
heads
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
hearts
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From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
higher
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
indulgence
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
John
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
just
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
knees
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
ladies
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
library
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
Like
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From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
loll
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
manhood
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
many
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
men
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
Meredith
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From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
music-box
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From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
nodeterminerUS /noʊ/
not any; not one
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
nowadays
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
observe
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
ourdeterminerUS /ˈaʊər/
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
plays
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
shut
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
signs
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
Sir
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
sitting
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
some
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
stiffly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
straight-backed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
tea
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
There
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
Unfashionable
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
up
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Sir John Meredith was sitting stiffly in a straight-backed chair by his library fire.
WepronounUS /wiː/
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We shut our hearts up nowadays, Like some old music-box that plays Unfashionable airs.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There were no such chairs in this library, just as there was no afternoon tea except for ladies.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Sir John Meredith was distressed to observe a great many signs of the degeneration of manhood, which he attributed to the indulgence in afternoon tea.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
young
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In his young days men did not loll in deep chairs, with their knees higher than their heads.
