---
title: constitution — Judaism dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «constitution» in the Judaism dictionary: A constitution is the set of basic laws and rules that says how a country or group is governed. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# constitution

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** constitution, basic laws, person, school council, council, US Constitution · **What happens:** be, say, govern, constitute, choose, write · **To what, where:** set, country, leaders, own constitution, single written constitution, strong constitution · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«constitution» in the Judaism dictionary: its 2 meanings for a pupil and its 6 examples, every sentence parsed by Mova itself — its syntax tree, a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies, and its pragmatics clause by clause. The word in the dictionary, with its sense in the lessons: [constitution in the Judaism dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/constitution.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A constitution is the set of basic laws and rules that says how a country or group is governed.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:m1:1
# text = A constitution is the set of basic laws and rules that says how a country or group is governed.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	set	set	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	basic	basic	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	laws	law	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	rules	rule	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	conj	_	_
11	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	12	nsubj	_	_
12	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	acl:relcl	_	_
13	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	19	advmod	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	country	country	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	nsubj:pass	_	_
16	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
17	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	conj	_	_
18	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	aux:pass	_	_
19	governed	govern	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	12	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a constitution | the set |  |  |  | of basic laws and rules | tree rules |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | basic laws and rules |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **govern** | present · passive |  | a country or group |  |  |  |  | vn supervision-95.2.2 «NP V NP.theme»: subject=Theme |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A person's constitution is how healthy and strong their body is.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:m2:1
# text = A person's constitution is how healthy and strong their body is.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
6	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
7	healthy	healthy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	strong	strong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	conj	_	_
10	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	body	body	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | a person's constitution |  |  |  |  | healthy *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **be** |  | a person's constitution *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **constitute** |  | a person |  |  |  |  |  | nom constitution «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The constitution says how the country's leaders are chosen.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x1:1
# text = The constitution says how the country's leaders are chosen.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	10	advmod	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	country	country	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	's	's	PART	POS	_	6	case	_	_
8	leaders	leader	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
9	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	chosen	choose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | the constitution |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **choose** | present · passive |  | the country's leaders |  |  |  |  | vn get-13.5.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Our school council wrote its own constitution.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x2:1
# text = Our school council wrote its own constitution.
1	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
2	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	council	council	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	wrote	write	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
6	own	own	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **write** | past | Our school council | council's own constitution |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent constitution=Theme |
| 2 | **constitute** |  | council |  |  |  |  |  | nom constitution «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The US Constitution begins with the words «We the People».

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x3:1
# text = The US Constitution begins with the words «We the People».
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	US	US	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	Constitution	Constitution	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	begins	begin	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
8	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	11	nsubj	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	People	People	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	7	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **begin** | present | the US Constitution |  |  |  |  | with the words | vn begin-55.1-1-1 «NP V PP.subeventuality»: agent=Eventuality with word=Subeventuality |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The United Kingdom has no single written constitution.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x4:1
# text = The United Kingdom has no single written constitution.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	United	United	PROPN	NNP	_	3	flat	_	_
3	Kingdom	Kingdom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	8	det	_	_
6	single	single	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
7	written	write	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	amod	_	_
8	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | the United Kingdom | no single written constitution |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent constitution=Patient |
| 2 | **write** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Grandpa has a strong constitution and rarely gets ill.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x5:1
# text = Grandpa has a strong constitution and rarely gets ill.
1	Grandpa	Grandpa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	strong	strong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
7	rarely	rarely	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	gets	get	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
9	ill	ill	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | Grandpa | a strong constitution |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent constitution=Patient |
| 2 | **get** | present | Grandpa *not said here* |  |  |  |  | ill, rarely *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Changes to the constitution need a vote.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:judaism:constitution:x6:1
# text = Changes to the constitution need a vote.
1	Changes	change	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
2	to	to	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	constitution	constitution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nmod	_	_
5	need	need	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	vote	vote	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **need** | present | Changes to the constitution | a vote |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot vote=Theme |

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**Text:** the Judaism dictionary of Mova's schools (`world/data/dictionary-schools/`), written for Mova. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each meaning and example read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

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