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Neighbours on the Green
Neighbours on the Green

Chapter XXXV

Cover illustration for Neighbours on the Green
Context Illustration Reading 1/46 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.
It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.
‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.
I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.
So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.
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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.

Neighbours on the Green

Chapter XXXV

Reading 1/46 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.
Line 2
It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.
Line 3
‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.
Line 4
I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.
Line 5
So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

Learner Dictionary

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

About preposition US /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading “It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.”

After preposition US /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading “‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.”

Alone noun US /alone/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Anything pronoun US /ˈeniθɪŋ/

any thing at all

From this reading “It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.”

Asked noun US /asked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.”

Between preposition US /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading “It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.”

Free adjective US /friː/

acting without enough restraint or discipline

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Half noun US /half/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.”

Has auxiliary verb US /hæz/

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

From this reading “‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Hear noun US /hear/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Left noun US /left/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.”

May modal verb US /meɪ/

used to say something is possible, or to give permission

From this reading “‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.”

Might modal verb US /maɪt/

used to say something is possible but not certain

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.”

Quite noun US /quite/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.”

Speak noun US /speak/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.”

Sure noun US /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.”

Thing noun US /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

Whatever determiner US /ˌwʌˈtevər/

any or all of a kind, it does not matter which

From this reading “So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.”

All words in this reading · 83

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 So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

acquainted

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

air

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

alarmed

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

all

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

alonenounUS /alone/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

andeterminerUS /æn/

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

any

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

anythingpronounUS /ˈeniθɪŋ/

any thing at all

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

arranged

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

arrival

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

askednounUS /asked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

betweenprepositionUS /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

came

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

Chatty

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

courtship

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

crying

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

day

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

easy

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

Ellen

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

evidently

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

excitement

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

felt

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

freeadjectiveUS /friː/

acting without enough restraint or discipline

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

halfnounUS /half/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

happened

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

hasauxiliary verbUS /hæz/

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

hearnounUS /hear/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

house

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

incident

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

interested

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

laughing

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

leftnounUS /left/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

lesson

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

many

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

Maymodal verbUS /meɪ/

used to say something is possible, or to give permission

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

melancholy

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

mightmodal verbUS /maɪt/

used to say something is possible but not certain

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

more

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

much

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

new

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

OnepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

other

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

quitenounUS /quite/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

say

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

some

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

speak

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

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.

speed

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

suppressed

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

surenounUS /sure/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

there

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

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

thingnounUS /thing/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

unusual

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

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

way

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

From this reading It was not, evidently, anything to be alarmed about, for she looked half way between laughing and crying, but not melancholy.

whateverdeterminerUS /ˌwʌˈtevər/

any or all of a kind, it does not matter which

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading So I arranged with all speed--not an easy thing when there are so many in a house, to be left alone, and free to hear whatever she might have to say.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading I felt sure that some new incident had happened in her courtship, about which I was so much more interested than about any other courtship I was acquainted with.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading One day Ellen came to me, on her arrival, with an air of suppressed excitement quite unusual to her.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading ‘May I speak to you after Chatty has had her lesson?’ she asked.