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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 Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
Abington
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From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
afterglow
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
ages
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From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
ahead
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
amethystine
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
Bill
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From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
bottom
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From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
came
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From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
cave
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
certain
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
colored
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
cunning
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
down
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From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
effect
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
entered
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From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
finger
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
floods
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From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
forwardnounUS /forward/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Abington limped forward and joined him.
gave
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
glacial
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
gorge
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
grunt
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
hepronounUS /hiː/
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
hills
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
himpronounUS /hɪm/
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Abington limped forward and joined him.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
indication
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
ItpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
joined
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From this reading Abington limped forward and joined him.
laboriously
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From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
lay
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
lights
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
like
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
limped
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Abington limped forward and joined him.
loose
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
mark
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
narrow
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
peculiar
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
plowing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
pointed
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From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
Presently
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
rainfall
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
ravine
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
remembered
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
sand
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
sandy
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
shortadjectiveUS /ʃɔrt/
brief or direct in expression
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
sluicing
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
spring
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
stage
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
stiffly
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
stoppednounUS /stopped/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
straight-walled
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Bill and Abington came to and entered a narrow, straight-walled gorge.
up
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presently Bill, plowing laboriously ahead to a certain spring he remembered in a cave up this ravine, gave a grunt and stopped short.
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
valley
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
veil
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
watercourse
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading In the peculiar, amethystine veil of the afterglow which lay upon the hills like a cunning stage effect of, colored lights, he pointed a finger stiffly to a certain mark in the sand.
withprepositionUS /wɪð/
in the company of; together with
From this reading It had a loose, sandy bottom and every indication that ages before it had been a watercourse with the floods of glacial rainfall sluicing down to the valley.
