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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 As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
almost
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
also
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
arc
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
AsconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
away
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
Ayres
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From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
back
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
backing
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/
earlier than; in front of
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
billiard
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
blow
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
bullet
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From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
caused
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
clattered
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
cue
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
died
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
drawn
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
drove
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From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
evernounUS /ever/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
flash
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
floor
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
force
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
gun
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
hand
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
Hashknife
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
hepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
itpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
jerk
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
just
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
knocking
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
Len
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
lifenounUS /life/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
menacingly
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
muzzle
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From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
off
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
onprepositionUS /ɑːn/
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
out
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
piece
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
play
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
poker
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From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
Prentice
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From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
Prentice's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
quick
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From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
report
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
rightnounUS /right/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
room
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
saw
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
sharp
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
shortadjectiveUS /ʃɔrt/
brief or direct in expression
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
shot
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
strucknounUS /struck/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
swift
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
swinging
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
swung
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
table
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The bullet drove into the floor just short of the poker table.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
thud
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
trigger
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Len had whirled, drawn his gun and was backing away, swinging the muzzle of his gun menacingly, almost before the thud of the shot had died away in the room.
wentnounUS /went/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading But the force of the blow also caused Prentice to jerk back on the trigger, and the gun went off before it clattered to the floor.
whirled
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Len Ayres whirled at the report of the gun, and Hashknife saw as swift a piece of gun play as he ever saw in his life.
wrist
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As quick as a flash Hashknife swung his billiard cue in a short arc, struck Prentice’s right wrist a sharp blow, knocking the gun out of his hand.
