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First Plays
First Plays

Chapter IV

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Context Illustration Reading 1/85 · 5 lines
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GERALD.
The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.
For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.
I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.
MISS FARRINGDON.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

First Plays

Chapter IV

Reading 1/85 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
GERALD.
Line 2
The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.
Line 3
For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.
Line 4
I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.
Line 5
MISS FARRINGDON.

Learner Dictionary

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

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.”

Between preposition US /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading “The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.”

Christened noun US /ˈchristened/

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

From this reading “I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.”

Found noun US /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.”

Has auxiliary verb US /hæz/

the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading “For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.”

Myself pronoun US /ˌmaɪˈself/

used when the speaker is also the object of the action

From this reading “The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.”

Name noun US /name/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.”

Secret noun US /ˈsiː.krət/

Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.

From this reading “The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.”

All words in this reading · 54

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 slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

ago

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

anyhow

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

arisen

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

Aunt

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

betweenprepositionUS /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

christenednounUS /ˈchristened/

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

clergyman

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

coolness

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

days

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

discovered

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

due

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

fact

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

FARRINGDON

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

From this reading MISS FARRINGDON.

few

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

ForprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

foundnounUS /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

GERALD

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

From this reading GERALD.

guilty

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

Harriet

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

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

hasauxiliary verbUS /hæz/

the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

ifconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

job

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

known

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

MISS

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

From this reading MISS FARRINGDON.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

myselfpronounUS /ˌmaɪˈself/

used when the speaker is also the object of the action

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

namenounUS /name/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

out

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

perceive

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

pretended

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

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

real

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

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

recently

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

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

secretnounUS /ˈsiː.krət/

Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

slight

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

Tabitha

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading I have recently found out that she was christened Tabitha--or, anyhow, would have been, if the clergyman had known his job.

years

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

From this reading For years she has pretended that her real name was Harriet.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading The slight coolness which you perceive to have arisen between my Aunt Tabitha and myself is due to the fact that I discovered her guilty secret a few days ago.