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adeterminerUS /ə/
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
absurdly
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From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/
later than; following
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
agency
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
all
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From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
andeterminerUS /æn/
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
aunt
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
babe
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From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
bequeathed
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
Blount
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From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
bornnounUS /born/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
called
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
child
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
christenednounUS /ˈchristened/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
comfortable
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
died
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
father
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
fortunenounUS /ˈfortune/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
given
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From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
godfathers
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
godmothers
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
gratefully
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading That was not her real name.
indeed
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
inoffensive
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From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
itpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
knownounUS /know/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
knows
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From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
maidennoun, literaryUS /ˈmeɪdən/
a young woman who is not married
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
MARIS
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From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
mother
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
namenounUS /name/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading That was not her real name.
NodeterminerUS /noʊ/
not any; not one
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading That was not her real name.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
onepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
oughtmodal verbUS /ɔːt/
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
patronymic
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
pronounced
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
real
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That was not her real name.
respectable
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
rich
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
Sea
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From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
showing
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From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
soconjunctionUS /soʊ/
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading No one could have christened an inoffensive babe so absurdly.
spelled
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
Star
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
STELLA
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From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
ThatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That was not her real name.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading STELLA MARIS--Star of the Sea!
thereby
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
throughnounUS /ˈthrough/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That was not her real name.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
wisdom
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.
world
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her father had given her the respectable patronymic of Blount, which, as all the world knows, or ought to know, is not pronounced as it is spelled.
year
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her mother had, indeed, through the agency of godfathers and godmothers, called her Stella after a rich old maiden aunt, thereby showing her wisdom; for the maiden aunt died gratefully a year after the child was born, and bequeathed to her a comfortable fortune.