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 Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
all
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
American
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From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
Barleycorn
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From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
bleak
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From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
bout
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From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
coast
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
countryside
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
County
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
days
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From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
encounter
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From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
family
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From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
farming
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
fault
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
Francisco
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From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
frightened
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
heard
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
IpronounUS /aɪ/
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
imagination
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
immigrant
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
Irish
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
Italians
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
John
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
like
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
Mateo
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
mother
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
moved
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From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
MydeterminerUS /maɪ/
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
neighbours
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
nextnounUS /next/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
occurred
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
often
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
onprepositionUS /ɑːn/
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
onepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
only
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
other
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
ourdeterminerUS /ˈaʊər/
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
pride
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
primitive
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
ranch
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
sad
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
San
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
section
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
seven
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
south
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
StillnounUS /still/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
stock
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
there
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In all our section there was only one other old American family.
ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
timenounUS /time/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading This time my imagination was at fault, and I was frightened into the encounter.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Still farming, my family had moved to a ranch on the bleak sad coast of San Mateo County, south of San Francisco.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
wepronounUS /wiː/
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
whenconjunctionUS /wen/
at the time that
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
wild
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a wild, primitive countryside in those days; and often I heard my mother pride herself that we were old American stock and not immigrant Irish and Italians like our neighbours.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading My next bout with John Barleycorn occurred when I was seven.
