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Akbar: An Eastern Romance
Akbar: An Eastern Romance

Chapter XIII

Cover illustration for Akbar: An Eastern Romance
Context Illustration Reading 1/31 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
ASSASSINATION.
It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.
The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.
In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.
All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Akbar: An Eastern Romance

Chapter XIII

Reading 1/31 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
ASSASSINATION.
Line 2
It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.
Line 3
The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.
Line 4
In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.
Line 5
All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Around preposition US /ərˈaʊnd/

surrounding, or on every side of, something

From this reading “All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.”

Burn verb US /bɜːrn/

To consume or be consumed by fire.

From this reading “The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.”

Even noun US /even/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.”

Exchanged noun US /ˈexchanged/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.”

Hands plural noun US /hændz/

members of a ship’s crew

From this reading “It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.”

Morning noun US /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.”

Seemed noun US /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.”

Took noun US /took/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.”

All words in this reading · 83

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 It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

accompanied

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

All

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

also

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

aroundprepositionUS /ərˈaʊnd/

surrounding, or on every side of, something

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

ASSASSINATION

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

From this reading ASSASSINATION.

awake

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

beams

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

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

birds

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

bough

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

bright

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

brightly

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

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

burnverbUS /bɜːrn/

To consume or be consumed by fire.

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

charged

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

coloured

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

delivery

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

evennounUS /even/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

exchangednounUS /ˈexchanged/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

Fathpúr

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

fresh

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

full

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

handsplural nounUS /hændz/

members of a ship’s crew

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

heavy

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

horsemen

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

ifconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

important

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

InprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/

belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

joy

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

letters

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

lighter

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

many

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

messenger

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

met

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

monkeys

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

morningnounUS /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

nature

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

ordinary

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

peasants

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

reigned

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

road

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

sang

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

seemednounUS /seemed/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

shared

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

shone

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

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

Siddha

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

small

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

some

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

sprang

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

squirrels

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

sun

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

From this reading The sun shone brightly, but its beams did not burn.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

too

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

tooknounUS /took/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

tread

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

trees

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

From this reading In the trees sang many coloured birds, and squirrels and small monkeys sprang from bough to bough.

trusted

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

two

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

usual

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

From this reading All nature seemed awake and full of joy; and even the peasants met with on the road had exchanged their usual heavy tread for a lighter one, as if they also shared in the joy that reigned around.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

way

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

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading It was on a bright fresh morning when Siddha, accompanied by two horsemen, took his way to Fathpúr, charged with the delivery of some letters, too important to be trusted to the hands of an ordinary messenger.