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In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim
In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim

Chapter XXXVII

Cover illustration for In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim
Context Illustration Reading 1/30 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.
People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.
The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.
At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.
There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim

Chapter XXXVII

Reading 1/30 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.
Line 2
People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.
Line 3
The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.
Line 4
At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.
Line 5
There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

Learner Dictionary

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

After preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.”

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.”

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.”

Began noun US /began/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.”

Being auxiliary verb US /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading “The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.”

First noun US /first/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.”

Obtain verb US /əbˈteɪn/

to get something, especially through effort

From this reading “People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.”

Sober adjective US /ˈsoʊbər/

not affected by alcohol

From this reading “At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.”

Stood noun US /stood/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.”

Themselves pronoun US /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading “At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.”

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.”

Whose determiner US /huːz/

belonging to which person

From this reading “There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.”

All words in this reading · 78

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 street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

able

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

air

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

andeterminerUS /æn/

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

arrive

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

attended

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

audience

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

begannounUS /began/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

begun

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

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

building

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

centre

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

delivered

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

described

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

doors

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

early

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

elements

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

ended

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

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

faces

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

fashionable

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

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

firstnounUS /first/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

hall

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

interest

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

lavishly

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

lecture

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

lectures

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

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

men

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

newspapers

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

obtainverbUS /əbˈteɪn/

to get something, especially through effort

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

opened

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

other

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

outset

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

People

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

politician

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

popular

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

From this reading The lectures which had begun by being popular had ended by being fashionable.

presented

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

prominent

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

religious

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

reserved

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

scientific

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

seats

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

serious

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

soberadjectiveUS /ˈsoʊbər/

not affected by alcohol

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

society

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

some

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

sprinkling

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

stoodnounUS /stood/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

street

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

tendencies

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

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

themselvespronounUS /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading At the outset an audience of sober, religious tendencies had attended them, but after the first one had been delivered other elements had presented themselves.

There

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

toilettes

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

wear

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

well-known

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading The street in which the lecture hall stood began to wear the air of being a centre of interest some time before the doors of the building were opened.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

whosedeterminerUS /huːz/

belonging to which person

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.

wished

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

From this reading People who had not been able to obtain reserved seats wished to arrive early.

women

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

From this reading There had been a sprinkling of serious scientific men, a prominent politician or so, some society women whose faces and toilettes were well-known and lavishly described in the newspapers.