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 It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
absurdly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
admittance
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
also
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
asconjunctionUS /æz/
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
Aunt
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
back
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
blow
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
brow
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
bulk
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
byprepositionUS /baɪ/
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
coyly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
curtains
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
darkened
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
day
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
door
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
eachdeterminerUS /iːtʃ/
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
errand
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
farthermost
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
fat-leafed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
felt
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
first-floor
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
fist
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
former
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
front
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
frown
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
futile
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
gabled
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
garden
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
Gladys's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
greatnounUS /great/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
guarding
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
hepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
house
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
huge
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
interior
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
jumped
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
latter
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
limit
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
littlenounUS /little/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
looming
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
means
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
mindnounUS /mind/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
muslin
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
nextnounUS /next/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
obscured
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
onepronounUS /wʌn/
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
out
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
perky
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
plant
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
privacy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
resultant
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
ribbons
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
Risca's
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
row
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
samenounUS /same/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
scale
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading With his great bulk he felt himself absurdly out of scale.
shrinking
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
smashed
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
THEdeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
throughnounUS /ˈthrough/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
tied
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
tiny
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
tragedy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tragedy looming huge in his mind was also absurdly out of scale with his errand.
transparency
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
triangle
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
twenty
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
two-storied
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
villas
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The house was one of a row of twenty perky, gabled, two-storied little villas, each coyly shrinking to the farthermost limit of its tiny front garden, and each guarding the privacy of its interior by means of muslin curtains at the windows, tied back by ribbons, the resultant triangle of transparency being obscured by a fat-leafed plant.
waited
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE same frown darkened Risca's brow the next day as he waited for admittance at his Aunt Gladys's door.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
windows
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading It was such a futile little door to such a futile little house; he could have smashed in the former with a blow of his fist, and he could have jumped into the latter through the first-floor windows.
