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The Head of the House of Coombe
The Head of the House of Coombe

Chapter XIII

Cover illustration for The Head of the House of Coombe
Context Illustration Reading 1/34 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.
The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.
The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.
She had been outraged by her advent.
A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”
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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.

The Head of the House of Coombe

Chapter XIII

Reading 1/34 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.
Line 2
The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.
Line 3
The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.
Line 4
She had been outraged by her advent.
Line 5
A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”

Learner Dictionary

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

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “She had been outraged by her advent.”

Being auxiliary verb US /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading “The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Course noun US /course/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Fair noun US /fair/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.”

Found noun US /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Herself pronoun US /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Make noun US /make/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

Reasons noun US /ˈreasons/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.”

All words in this reading · 72

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 The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

absurdly

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

From this reading A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”

advent

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

From this reading She had been outraged by her advent.

aloof

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

always

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

baby

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

From this reading A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading She had been outraged by her advent.

beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading She had been outraged by her advent.

clear

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

confession

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

consciousness

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

coursenounUS /course/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

distaste

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

doesn't

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

embarrassed

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

fact

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

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

fairnounUS /fair/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

Feather

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

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

fluttered

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

foundnounUS /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

gaze

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

hesitating

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

intervals

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

knowledge

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

like

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

looking

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

makenounUS /make/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

mepronounUS /miː/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

obscurity

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

out

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

From this reading A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”

outraged

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

From this reading She had been outraged by her advent.

picture

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

From this reading A baby was absurdly “out of the picture.”

rare

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

reasonsnounUS /ˈreasons/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

Robin's

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

shade

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

ShepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

there

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

threshold

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

transient

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

unadorned

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

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

up

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading The unadorned fact was that Feather did _not_ like her.

way

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

welled

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

words

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.

world

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

From this reading The fair being who, at rare intervals, fluttered on the threshold of her world had a way of looking at her with a shade of aloof distaste in her always transient gaze.

young

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

From this reading When, from Robin’s embarrassed young consciousness, there had welled up the hesitating confession, “She—doesn’t like me,” she could not, of course, have found words in which to make the reasons for her knowledge clear, but they had for herself no obscurity.