“‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
“‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else. There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’ “‘And the work?’ “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_. There is the first volume of it in that press.
Reading 1/75 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.
accept an excuse for
From this reading ““‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.”
Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “‘And the work?’
any thing at all
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
accept an excuse for
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
not one and not the other of two
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
not any; not one
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “‘And the work?’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “‘Is to copy out the _Encyclopædia Britannica_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is the first volume of it in that press.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “‘No excuse will avail,’ said Mr. Duncan Ross; ‘neither sickness nor business nor anything else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “‘And the work?’
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading There you must stay, or you lose your billet.’
What is the central narrative or theme conveyed in this section of Case 02: The Red-Headed League?
Which core linguistic virtue or character attribute is emphasized in this passage?
According to the text: "II....", what tone does the author establish?
