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Love and Life
Love and Life

Chapter V · The Summons

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Context Illustration Reading 1/29 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.
The second Sunday of suspense had come.
The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”
The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.
The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.
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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.

Love and Life

Chapter V · The Summons

Reading 1/29 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.
Line 2
The second Sunday of suspense had come.
Line 3
The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”
Line 4
The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.
Line 5
The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

Learner Dictionary

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

Come noun US /come/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The second Sunday of suspense had come.”

Distress noun US /dɪˈstrɛs/

extreme sadness or suffering

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Good noun US /good/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.””

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Help noun US /help/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.””

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.”

Maiden noun, literary US /ˈmeɪdən/

a young woman who is not married

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Must modal verb US /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Second noun US /second/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The second Sunday of suspense had come.”

Take noun US /take/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Thing noun US /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.”

Those determiner US /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading “The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.””

Though conjunction US /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading “The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.””

Well noun US /well/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.”

Worthy adjective US /ˈwɜːr.ði/

Having or showing the qualities or abilities that merit recognition in character or magic.

From this reading “The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.””

All words in this reading · 81

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 Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

all

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

AndconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

bade

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

bothdeterminerUS /boʊθ/

the two together, not just one

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

breakfast

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

bright

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

butter

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

calm

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

century

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

comenounUS /come/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

cool

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

day

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

devoid

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

distressnounUS /dɪˈstrɛs/

extreme sadness or suffering

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

festal

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

flowers

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

fresh

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

full

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

goodnounUS /good/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

helpnounUS /help/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

honey

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

house

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

inhabited

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

King

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

knew

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

ladies

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

later

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

maidennoun, literaryUS /ˈmeɪdən/

a young woman who is not married

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

Major

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

MORRIS

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

old

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

out

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

Palmer

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

peacefulness

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

pots

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

preserved

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

readiness

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

resembled

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

rooms

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

second

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

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

Sunday

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

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

Sundays

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

suspense

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

From this reading The second Sunday of suspense had come.

sweet

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

table

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

takenounUS /take/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

there

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

thingnounUS /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

things

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

thosedeterminerUS /ðoʊz/

the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

ToparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

uniform

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

well

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

From this reading The inhabited rooms of the old house looked bright and festal; there were fresh flowers in the pots, honey as well as butter on the breakfast table.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading But when the King knew that the thing must be, And that no help there was in this distress, He bade them have all things in readiness To take the maiden out.--MORRIS.

wonderfully

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

From this reading The Major and Palmer were both in full uniform, wonderfully preserved.

worthyadjectiveUS /ˈwɜːr.ði/

Having or showing the qualities or abilities that merit recognition in character or magic.

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”

young

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

From this reading The Sundays of good young ladies little resembled those of a century later, though they were not devoid of a calm peacefulness, worthy of the “sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright.”