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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 The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
againstprepositionUS /əˈɡenst/
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
all
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
appearancenounUS /ˈappearance/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
atprepositionUS /æt/
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
bars
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From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
beat
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From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
broughtnounUS /ˈbrought/
a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
butconjunctionUS /bʌt/
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
came
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From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
cellmate
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From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
Chinese
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From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
Chinook
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From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
couplenounUS /ˈkʌpəl/
two people or things considered together
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
cut
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From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
daytime
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
decided
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
door
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From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
drunken
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From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
end
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From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
fellow
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From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
felony
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
finished
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From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
forprepositionUS /fɔːr/
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
four
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From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
friend
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From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
half-breeds
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From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
house
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
IpronounUS /aɪ/
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
Indians
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Indians watched us and we watched them.
isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
jail
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
jailer
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From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
job
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
keep
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
lookout
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I decided to cut the bars in the daytime and have my cellmate keep a lookout at the door against the appearance of our jailer or the Indians.
mydeterminerUS /maɪ/
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
notadverbUS /nɑːt/
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
only
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
others
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
ourdeterminerUS /ˈaʊər/
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
places
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
prisoners
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
skookum
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
spring
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
takenounUS /take/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
theirdeterminerUS /ðer/
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
thempronounUS /ðem/
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading The Indians watched us and we watched them.
tillicum
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
timenounUS /time/
an important story-specific word used in this passage
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
toparticleUS /tuː/
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
tough
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
trusties
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
two
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The two half-breeds had finished their time and a couple of others had been brought in to take their places, four prisoners in all.
uspronounUS /ʌs/
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The Indians watched us and we watched them.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
watched
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Indians watched us and we watched them.
watchful
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The tough end of our job was not to beat the jail or the drunken jailer, but the watchful trusties, our fellow prisoners.
wepronounUS /wiː/
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading The Indians watched us and we watched them.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
WhenconjunctionUS /wen/
at the time that
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.
whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading When spring came, my Chinese “tillicum,” which is Chinook for friend, and I were the only felony prisoners in the “skookum house,” or jail.