the |
1. art. Definite grammatical article that implies necessarily that an entity it articulates is presupposed; something already mentioned, or completely specified later in that same sentence, or assumed already | |
I’m reading the book. (Compare I’m reading a book.) | |
The street in front of your house. (Compare A street in Paris.) | |
The men and women watched the man give the birdseed to the bird. | |
2. art. Used before a noun modified by a restrictive relative clause, indicating that the noun refers to a single referent defined by the relative clause. | |
The street that runs through my hometown. | |
3. art. Used before an object considered to be unique, or of which there is only one at a time. | |
No one knows how many galaxies there are in the universe. | |
God save the Queen! | |
4. art. Used before a superlative or an ordinal number modifying a noun, to indicate that the noun refers to a single item. | |
That was the best apple pie ever. | |
5. art. Added to a superlative or an ordinal number to make it into a substantive. | |
That apple pie was the best. | |
6. art. Introducing a singular term to be taken generically: preceding a name of something standing for a whole class. | |
7. art. Used before an adjective, indicating all things (especially persons) described by that adjective. | |
Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable. | |
8. art. Used to indicate a certain example of (a noun) which is usually of most concern or most common or familiar. | |
No one in the whole country had seen it before. | |
I don't think I'll get to it until the morning. | |
9. art. Used before a body part (especially of someone previously mentioned), as an alternative to a possessive pronoun. | |
A stone hit him on the head. (= “A stone hit him on his head.”) | |
10. art. When stressed, indicates that it describes an object which is considered to be best or exclusively worthy of attention. | |
That is the hospital to go to for heart surgery. | |
11. adv. 1=With a comparative ormore and a verb phrase, establishes a parallel with one or more other such comparatives. | |
The hotter the better. | |
The more I think about it, the weaker it looks. | |
The more money donated, the more books purchased, and the more happy children. | |
It looks weaker and weaker, the more I think about it. | |
12. adv. 1=With a comparative, and often withfor it, indicates a result more like said comparative. This can be negated withnone. | |
It was a difficult time, but I’m the wiser for it. | |
It was a difficult time, and I’m none the wiser for it. | |
I'm much the wiser for having had a difficult time like that. | |
last |
1. adj. Final, ultimate, coming after all others of its kind. | |
“Eyes Wide Shut” was the last film to be directed by Stanley Kubrick. | |
2. adj. Most recent, latest, last so far. | |
The last time I saw him, he was married. | |
I have received your note dated the 17th last, and am responding to say that.... (archaic usage) | |
3. adj. Farthest of all from a given quality, character, or condition; most unlikely, or least preferable. | |
He is the last person to be accused of theft. | |
The last person I want to meet is Helen. | |
More rain is the last thing we need right now. | |
4. adj. Being the only one remaining of its class. | |
Japan is the last empire. | |
5. adj. Supreme; highest in degree; utmost. | |
6. adj. Lowest in rank or degree. | |
the last prize | |
7. det. The (one) immediately before the present. | |
We went there last year. | |
8. det. (of a day of the week) Closest to seven days (one week) ago. | |
It's Wednesday, and the party was last Tuesday; that is, not yesterday, but eight days ago. | |
9. adv. Most recently. | |
When we last met, he was based in Toronto. | |
10. adv. (sequence) after everything else; finally | |
I'll go last. | |
last but not least | |
11. v. (transitive, obsolete) To perform, carry out. | |
12. v. (intransitive) To endure, continue over time. | |
Summer seems to last longer each year. | |
They seem happy now, but that won't last long. | |
13. v. (intransitive) To hold out, continue undefeated or entire. | |
I don't know how much longer we can last without reinforcements. | |
14. n. A tool for shaping or preserving the shape of shoes. | |
15. v. To shape with a last; to fasten or fit to a last; to place smoothly on a last. | |
to last a boot | |
16. n. (obsolete) A burden; load; a cargo; freight. | |
17. n. (obsolete) A measure of weight or quantity, varying in designation depending on the goods concerned. | |
18. n. (obsolete) An old English (and Dutch) measure of the carrying capacity of a ship, equal to two tons. | |
19. n. A load of some commodity with reference to its weight and commercial value. | |
hours |
1. n. plural of hour | |
hour |
1. n. A time period of sixty minutes; one twenty-fourth of a day. | |
I spent an hour at lunch. | |
2. n. A season, moment, time or stound. | |
3. n. (poetic) The time. | |
The hour grows late and I must go home. | |
4. n. (military, in the plural) Used after a two-digit hour and a two-digit minute to indicate time. | |
5. n. (chiefly US) A distance that can be traveled in one hour. | |
This place is an hour away from where I live. | |
before |
1. prep. Earlier than (in time). | |
I want this done before Monday. | |
2. prep. In front of in space. | |
He stood before me. | |
We sat before the fire to warm ourselves. | |
3. prep. In the presence of. | |
He performed before the troops in North Africa. | |
He spoke before a joint session of Congress. | |
4. prep. Under consideration, judgment, authority of (someone). | |
The case laid before the panel aroused nothing but ridicule. | |
5. prep. In store for, in the future of (someone). | |
6. prep. In front of, according to a formal system of ordering items. | |
In alphabetical order, "cat" comes before "dog", "canine" before feline". | |
7. prep. At a higher or greater position than, in a ranking. | |
An entrepreneur puts market share and profit before quality, an amateur intrinsic qualities before economical considerations. | |
8. adv. At an earlier time. | |
I've never done this before. | |
9. adv. In advance. | |
10. adv. At the front end. | |
11. conj. in advance of the time when | |
12. conj. (informal) rather or sooner than | |
death |
1. n. The cessation of life and all associated processes; the end of an organism's existence as an entity independent from its environment and its return to an inert, nonliving state. | |
The death of my grandmother saddened the whole family. | |
2. n. (often, capitalized) The personification of death as a hooded figure with a scythe; the Grim Reaper. | |
When death walked in, a chill spread through the room. | |
3. n. (the death) The collapse or end of something. | |
England scored a goal at the death to even the score at one all. death of the feudalism | |
4. n. (figuratively, esp. followed by of-phrase) A cause of great stress, exhaustion, embarrassment, or another negative condition (for someone). | |
This bake sale is gonna be the death of me! | |