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 The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
admirer
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
advanced
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
andeterminerUS /æn/
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
ashamedadjectiveUS /əˈʃeɪmd/
feeling guilt or embarrassment after doing something that causes embarrassment
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
beauxiliary verbUS /biː/
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
become
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
begun
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
black
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
byprepositionUS /baɪ/
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
cannot
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
contrary
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
courted
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
elder
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
equallynounUS /ˈequally/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
find
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
friends
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
gray
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
hair
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
hairs
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
HisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
impunity
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
made
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
Man
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
MIDDLE-AGED
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
new
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
Old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
onprepositionUS /ɑːn/
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
OnepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
ones
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
other
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
out
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
pointnounUS /pɔɪnt/
the main matter or purpose being discussed
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
portion
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
pull
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
removing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
sacrificed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
samenounUS /same/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
shepronounUS /ʃiː/
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
some
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
Sweethearts
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
ThedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
timenounUS /time/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
turn
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
Two
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
visited
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
well
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
wheneverconjunctionUS /weˈnevər/
at any time that; every time that
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
whosedeterminerUS /huːz/
belonging to which person
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
wife
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
wishing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
woman
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
women
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Man and His Two Sweethearts A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same time.
years
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
young
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years.
younger
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The elder woman, ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs.
zealous
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The younger, on the contrary, not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray hair she could find.
