---
title: abdication — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «abdication» in the school dictionary: Abdication is when a king, queen or other ruler gives up the throne of their own free will. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/abdication/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/) / [school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/) / [A](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/) / abdication

# abdication

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** king, Abdication, you, duty, Edward, queen · **What happens:** give up, mean, fail, do, abdicate, shock · **To what, where:** throne, Abdication, Britain, 1936, brother, television

<!-- .vabout -->
«abdication» in the school dictionary: its 2 meanings for a pupil and its 7 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: [abdication in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/abdication.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Abdication is when a king, queen or other ruler gives up the throne of their own free will.

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:m1:1
# text = Abdication is when a king, queen or other ruler gives up the throne of their own free will.
1	Abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	11	mark	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	king	king	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
7	queen	queen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	_
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
9	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	ruler	ruler	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	_
11	gives	give	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
12	up	up	ADP	RP	_	11	compound:prt	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	throne	throne	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	_
15	of	of	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
16	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	19	nmod:poss	_	_
17	own	own	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	free	free	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	19	amod	_	_
19	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	14	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give up** | present | a king and queen or other ruler | the throne |  |  |  |  | vn resign-10.11-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent throne=Source |

<!-- .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}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: formal — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Abdication of a duty or responsibility means failing to do what you should do, as if giving it up.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:m2:1
# text = Abdication of a duty or responsibility means failing to do what you should do, as if giving it up.
1	Abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
2	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	duty	duty	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nmod	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	responsibility	responsibility	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
7	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	failing	fail	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	7	xcomp	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
10	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	xcomp	_	_
11	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	14	obj	_	_
12	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj	_	_
13	should	should	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	14	aux	_	_
14	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
16	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	18	mark	_	_
17	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	18	mark	_	_
18	giving	give	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	10	advcl	_	_
19	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	obj	_	_
20	up	up	ADP	RP	_	18	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Abdication of a duty or responsibility |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **fail** *not said to happen* | gerund | Abdication of a duty or responsibility *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality |
| 3 | **do** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | Abdication of a duty or responsibility *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **do** | should | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent what=Eventuality |
| 5 | **give up** | gerund | Abdication of a duty or responsibility *not said here* | Abdication |  |  |  |  | vn resign-10.11-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Source |
| 6 | **abdicate** |  | a duty or responsibility |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: of=agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The abdication of Edward VIII shocked Britain in 1936.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x1:1
# text = The abdication of Edward VIII shocked Britain in 1936.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	Edward	Edward	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	VIII	VIII	NUM	CD	NumForm=Roman|NumType=Card	4	flat	_	_
6	shocked	shock	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	Britain	Britain	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	1936	1936	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **shock** | past | the abdication of Edward | Britain |  | 1936 |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Stimulus britain=Experiencer |
| 2 | **abdicate** |  | Edward |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: of=agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
After the king's abdication, his brother was crowned.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x2:1
# text = After the king's abdication, his brother was crowned.
1	After	after	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	king	king	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	's	's	PART	POS	_	3	case	_	_
5	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
7	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
9	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	crowned	crown	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **crown** | past · passive |  | king's brother |  |  | after the king's abdication |  | vn appoint-29.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme |
| 2 | **abdicate** |  | the king |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The queen announced her abdication on television.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x3:1
# text = The queen announced her abdication on television.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	queen	queen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	announced	announce	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	on	on	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	television	television	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **announce** *speech: other* | past | the queen | queen's abdication |  | television |  |  | vn reflexive\_appearance-48.1.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent abdication=Theme |
| 2 | **abdicate** |  | queen |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Leaving the little ones alone was an abdication of responsibility.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x4:1
# text = Leaving the little ones alone was an abdication of responsibility.
1	Leaving	leave	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	csubj	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	ones	one	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
5	alone	alone	ADV	RB	_	1	advmod	_	_
6	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	responsibility	responsibility	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leave** | gerund |  | the little ones |  |  |  | alone *property* | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent one=Theme |
| 2 | **is a** | past | Leaving | a abdication |  |  |  | of responsibility | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The history book has a whole chapter on the abdication crisis.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x5:1
# text = The history book has a whole chapter on the abdication crisis.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	history	history	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	book	book	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	whole	whole	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	chapter	chapter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
8	on	on	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	crisis	crisis	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | the history book | a whole chapter |  | the abdication crisis |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent chapter=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her abdication let her son become king.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x6:1
# text = Her abdication let her son become king.
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	let	let	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	her	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	obj	_	_
5	son	son	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
6	become	become	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	xcomp	_	_
7	king	king	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **let** | past | Her abdication | her *= she* |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **become** | present | son | king |  |  |  |  | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient |
| 3 | **abdicate** |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
After the voluntary abdication of Oedipus, his two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, took possession of the crown and reigned over the city of Thebes.

<!-- fold The tree, 24 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:abdication:x7:1
# text = After the voluntary abdication of Oedipus, his two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, took possession of the crown and reigned over the city of Thebes.
1	After	after	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	voluntary	voluntary	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	abdication	abdication	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	obl	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	Oedipus	Oedipus	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
8	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
9	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	10	nummod	_	_
10	sons	son	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	16	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
12	Eteocles	Eteocles	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	appos	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	Polynices	polynice	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
16	took	take	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
17	possession	possession	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	obj	_	_
18	of	of	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
19	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
20	crown	crown	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	nmod	_	_
21	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	22	cc	_	_
22	reigned	reign	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	16	conj	_	_
23	over	over	ADP	IN	_	25	case	_	_
24	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	25	det	_	_
25	city	city	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	22	obl	_	_
26	of	of	ADP	IN	_	27	case	_	_
27	Thebes	thebe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	25	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	16	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | past | Oedipus's two sons and Polynices | possession of the crown |  |  | after the voluntary abdication of Oedipus |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent possession=Theme |
| 2 | **reign** | participle | Oedipus's two sons and Polynices *not said here* |  |  | the city of Thebes |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **abdicate** |  | Oedipus |  |  |  |  |  | nom abdication «communication intransitive»: of=agent |
| 4 | **possess** |  |  | the crown |  |  |  |  | nom possession «act transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the school 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.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [abdicate](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/abdicate/)
- next →: [abdomen](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/abdomen/)
- ↑ back to [A in school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/)