| a |
| 1. art. One; any indefinite example of; used to denote a singular item of a group. | |
| There was a man here looking for you yesterday. | |
| 2. art. Used in conjunction with the adjectives score, dozen, hundred, thousand, and million, as a function word. | |
| I've seen it happen a hundred times. | |
| 3. art. One certain or particular; any single.Brown, Lesley, (2003) | |
| We've received an interesting letter from a Mrs. Miggins of London. | |
| 4. art. The same; one. | |
| We are of a mind on matters of morals. | |
| 5. art. Any, every; used before a noun which has become modified to limit its scope; also used with a negative to indicate not a single one.Lindberg, Christine A. (2007) | |
| A man who dies intestate leaves his children troubles and difficulties. | |
| He fell all that way, and hasn't a bump on his head? | |
| 6. art. Used before plural nouns modified by few, good many, couple, great many, etc. | |
| 7. art. Someone or something like; similar to; Used before a proper noun to create an example out of it. | |
| The center of the village was becoming a Times Square. | |
| 8. prep. (archaic) To do with position or direction; In, on, at, by, towards, onto. | |
| Stand a tiptoe. | |
| 9. prep. To do with separation; In, into. | |
| Torn a pieces. | |
| 10. prep. To do with time; Each, per, in, on, by. | |
| I brush my teeth twice a day. | |
| 11. prep. (obsolete) To do with method; In, with. | |
| 12. prep. (obsolete) To do with role or capacity; In. | |
| A God’s name. | |
| 13. prep. To do with status; In. | |
| King James Bible (II Chronicles 2:18) | |
| To set the people a worke. | |
| 14. prep. (archaic) To do with process, with a passive verb; In the course of, experiencing. | |
| 1964, Bob Dylan, The Times They Are a-Changin’ | |
| The times, they are a-changin'. | |
| 15. prep. (archaic) To do with an action, an active verb; Engaged in. | |
| 1611, King James Bible, Hebrews 11-21 | |
| Jacob, when he was a dying | |
| 16. prep. (archaic) To do with an action/movement; To, into. | |
| 17. v. (archaic, or slang) Have. | |
| I'd a come, if you'd a asked. | |
| 18. pron. (obsolete, outside, England, and Scotland dialects) He. | |
| 19. interj. A meaningless syllable; ah. | |
| 20. prep. (archaic, slang) Of. | |
| The name of John a Gaunt. | |
| 21. adv. (chiefly Scotland) All. | |
| 22. adj. (chiefly Scotland) All. | |
| gradual |
| 1. adj. Proceeding or advancing by small, slow, regular steps or degrees | |
| a gradual increase of knowledge; a gradual decline | |
| 2. n. (Roman Catholic Church) An antiphon or responsory after the epistle, in the Mass, which was sung on the steps, or while the deacon ascended the steps. | |
| 3. n. (Roman Catholic Church) A service book containing the musical portions of the Mass. | |
| decline |
| 1. n. A reduction or diminution of activity. | |
| 2. v. (intransitive) To move downwards, to fall, to drop. | |
| The dollar has declined rapidly since 2001. | |
| 3. v. (intransitive) To become weaker or worse. | |
| My health declined in winter. | |
| 4. v. To bend downward; to bring down; to depress; to cause to bend, or fall. | |
| 5. v. To cause to decrease or diminish. | |
| 6. v. To turn or bend aside; to deviate; to stray; to withdraw. | |
| a line that declines from straightness | |
| conduct that declines from sound morals | |
| 7. v. To refuse, forbear. | |
| On reflection I think I will decline your generous offer. | |
| 8. v. (transitive, grammar, usually of substantives, adjectives and pronouns) To inflect for case, number and sometimes gender. | |
| 9. v. (by extension) To run through from first to last; to repeat like a schoolboy declining a noun. | |
| 10. v. (American football, Canadian football) To reject a penalty against the opposing team, usually because the result of accepting it would benefit the non-penalized team less than the preceding play. | |
