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The Small House at Allington
The Small House at Allington

Chapter XXIV

Cover illustration for The Small House at Allington
Context Illustration Reading 1/54 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
"SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."
John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.
The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.
But he did not at all know what might be the results.
Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?
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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 Small House at Allington

Chapter XXIV

Reading 1/54 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
"SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."
Line 2
John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.
Line 3
The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.
Line 4
But he did not at all know what might be the results.
Line 5
Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

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 “The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.”

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?”

John noun US /john/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.”

Know noun US /know/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “But he did not at all know what might be the results.”

Might modal verb US /maɪt/

used to say something is possible but not certain

From this reading “But he did not at all know what might be the results.”

Morning noun US /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.”

Standing noun US /ˈstanding/

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

From this reading “John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.”

Whether conjunction US /ˈweðər/

used to introduce two or more possibilities

From this reading “John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.”

Would modal verb US /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading “Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?”

All words in this reading · 57

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 whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

all

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

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

certain

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

COMES

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

From this reading "SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."

CONQUERING

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

From this reading "SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

Eames

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

excitement

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

extent

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

hardly

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

head

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

heels

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

HERO

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

From this reading "SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

intense

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

John

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

knew

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

knownounUS /know/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

latterly

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

locked

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

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

magistrate

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

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

mightmodal verbUS /maɪt/

used to say something is possible but not certain

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

morningnounUS /morning/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

o'clock

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

office

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

precisely

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

reached

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

results

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

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

SEE

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

From this reading "SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

standingnounUS /ˈstanding/

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

taken

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

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading "SEE, THE CONQUERING HERO COMES."

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

triumph

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

twelve

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

up

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

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading But he did not at all know what might be the results.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

whetherconjunctionUS /ˈweðər/

used to introduce two or more possibilities

From this reading John Eames had reached his office precisely at twelve o'clock, but when he did so he hardly knew whether he was standing on his heels or his head.

whole

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

From this reading The whole morning had been to him one of intense excitement, and latterly, to a certain extent, one of triumph.

Wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading Would he be taken before a magistrate and locked up?