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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 Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
business
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
byprepositionUS /baɪ/
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
canmodal verbUS /kæn/
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
carpenters
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From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
certain
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From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
cobblers
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From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
country
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From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
cultivate
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From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
despair
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From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
doauxiliary verbUS /duː/
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
evennounUS /even/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
expectverbUS /ɪkˈspekt/
to think that something will happen
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
fathers
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From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
flowers
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From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
fruits
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From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
garden
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
gardeners
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
goodnounUS /good/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
grass
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From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
himpronounUS /hɪm/
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
How
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
itpronounUS /ɪt/
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
king
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
learned
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
lived
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From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
man
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
many
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
men
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
neitherdeterminerUS /ˈniːðər/
not one and not the other of two
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
norconjunctionUS /nɔːr/
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
old
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
Once
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From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
palace
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
said
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
shady
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From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
shouldmodal verbUS /ʃʊd/
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
soil
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
spacious
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
surrounded
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From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
there
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
theypronounUS /ðeɪ/
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading How should they have learned to cultivate your garden?”
thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/
in spite of the fact that
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
timenounUS /time/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
trees
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
understandnounUS /understand/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/
a formal word for “on”
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
whatpronounUS /wʌt/
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
whenconjunctionUS /wen/
at the time that
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
whosedeterminerUS /huːz/
belonging to which person
From this reading Once upon a time in a certain country there lived a king whose palace was surrounded by a spacious garden.
wise
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The King was in despair about it, when a wise old man said to him:
yielded
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, though the gardeners were many and the soil was good, this garden yielded neither flowers nor fruits, not even grass or shady trees.
youpronounUS /juː/
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
YourdeterminerUS /jɔːr/
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Your gardeners do not understand their business: but what can you expect of men whose fathers were cobblers and carpenters?
