used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
adriftadjectiveUS /əˈdrɪft/
aimlessly drifting
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
Extreme physical or mental suffering; intense anguish.
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
extreme mental distress
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He struggled, and begged to be set down.
inflected form of “beg” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading He struggled, and begged to be set down.
the two together, not just one
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
brutallyadverbUS /ˈbruːtəli/
in a vicious manner
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
captivenounUS /ˈkæptɪv/
a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
past form of “cause” — give rise to; cause to happen or occur, not always intentionally
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a state at a particular time
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
creepernoun
any plant (as ivy or periwinkle) that grows by creeping
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
separate with or as if with an instrument
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
someone who is a detective
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading He struggled, and begged to be set down.
of the greatest possible degree or extent or intensity
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
Langdon
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
staying power
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
engage in
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading "Now place him on his feet and make a creeper fast to his hands.
regainedverbUS /riˈɡeɪnd/
past form of “regain” — get or find back; recover the use of
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
occurring or distributed over widely spaced and irregular intervals in time or space
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
plural of “sens” — street names for marijuana
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He struggled, and begged to be set down.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
in the near future
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
struggledverbUS /ˈstrʌɡəld/
past form of “struggle” — make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading He struggled, and begged to be set down.
a state of acute pain
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
swampedverbUS /swɔːmpt/
past form of “swamp” — drench or submerge or be drenched or submerged
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Cut his legs adrift, then," said James Langdon, brutally.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
torturesnounUS /ˈtɔːrtʃərz/
plural of “torture” — extreme mental distress
From this reading He was suffering tortures, so much so that the agony swamped all thought of his miserable condition as a captive.
a source of difficulty
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
precisely as stated
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
at the time that
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
witsnounUS /wɪts/
the basic human power of intelligent thought and perception
From this reading When Dick regained his senses an hour later his first feeling was one of extreme anguish in both hands and feet, and very soon the pain caused his scattered wits to return, and led him to discover the cause of his trouble.
