---
title: acquisition — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «acquisition» in the school dictionary: Something you have got or bought, especially something new and valuable. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# acquisition

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Something, act, one company, newest acquisition, museum, Language acquisition · **What happens:** get, buy, be, acquire, happen, announce · **To what, where:** something, another, dinosaur skull, proudest acquisition, acquisition, smaller firm

<!-- .vabout -->
«acquisition» in the school dictionary: its 3 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: [acquisition in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/acquisition.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Something you have got or bought, especially something new and valuable.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:m1:1
# text = Something you have got or bought, especially something new and valuable.
1	Something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	nsubj	_	_
2	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
3	have	have	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	got	get	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	bought	buy	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
8	especially	especially	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
9	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obl	_	_
10	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	valuable	valuable	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | present · perfect | Something | something |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **buy** | participle | Something *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn accept-77.1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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 -->
The act of getting something.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:m2:1
# text = The act of getting something.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	act	act	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	4	mark	_	_
4	getting	get	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	acl	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | gerund | the act *not said here* | something |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer something=Stimulus |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
When one company buys another.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:m3:1
# text = When one company buys another.
1	When	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	4	mark	_	_
2	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
3	company	company	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	buys	buy	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	another	another	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **buy** | present | one company | another |  |  |  |  | vn accept-77.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent another=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The museum's newest acquisition is a dinosaur skull.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x1:1
# text = The museum's newest acquisition is a dinosaur skull.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	museum	museum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	newest	new	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	5	amod	_	_
5	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	dinosaur	dinosaur	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	skull	skull	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the museum's newest acquisition | a dinosaur skull |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **acquire** |  | the museum |  |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Language acquisition happens fast in young children.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x2:1
# text = Language acquisition happens fast in young children.
1	Language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	happens	happen	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	fast	fast	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	3	advmod	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	young	young	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	children	child	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **happen** | present | Language acquisition |  |  |  |  | in young children; fast *property* | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V PP»: agent=Theme in child=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The bike was his proudest acquisition.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x3:1
# text = The bike was his proudest acquisition.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	bike	bike	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
5	proudest	proud	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	6	amod	_	_
6	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | the bike | his proudest acquisition |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The company announced the acquisition of a smaller firm.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x4:1
# text = The company announced the acquisition of a smaller firm.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	company	company	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	announced	announce	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	smaller	small	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	9	amod	_	_
9	firm	firm	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **announce** *speech: other* | past | the company | the acquisition of a smaller firm |  |  |  |  | vn reflexive\_appearance-48.1.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent acquisition=Theme |
| 2 | **acquire** |  |  | a smaller firm |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The library has a list of recent acquisitions.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x5:1
# text = The library has a list of recent acquisitions.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	library	library	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	list	list	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	recent	recent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	acquisitions	acquisition	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | the library | a list of recent acquisitions |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent list=Patient |
| 2 | **list** |  |  | recent acquisitions |  |  |  |  | nom list «communication transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The acquisition of new skills takes practice.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x6:1
# text = The acquisition of new skills takes practice.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	skills	skill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nmod	_	_
6	takes	take	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	practice	practice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | present | the acquisition of new skills | practice |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent practice=Theme |
| 2 | **acquire** |  |  | new skills |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Among these, the tales reported by Mrs. Balfour, with a thorough knowledge of the peasants' mind and mode of speech, are a veritable acquisition.

<!-- fold The tree, 25 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:acquisition:x7:1
# text = Among these, the tales reported by Mrs. Balfour, with a thorough knowledge of the peasants' mind and mode of speech, are a veritable acquisition.
1	Among	among	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
2	these	this	PRON	DT	Number=Plur|PronType=Dem	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	tales	tale	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	28	obl	_	_
6	reported	report	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	acl	_	_
7	by	by	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	Mrs.	Mrs.	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
9	Balfour	Balfour	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	flat	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
11	with	with	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
13	thorough	thorough	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
14	knowledge	knowledge	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	appos	_	_
15	of	of	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	peasants	peasant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	19	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	'	's	PART	POS	_	17	case	_	_
19	mind	mind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	_
20	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	21	cc	_	_
21	mode	mode	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	conj	_	_
22	of	of	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
23	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
25	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	28	cop	_	_
26	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	28	det	_	_
27	veritable	veritable	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	28	amod	_	_
28	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	28	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **report** | participle |  | the tales *not said here* |  |  |  | by Mrs. | vn characterize-29.2-1-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is a** | present |  | a veritable acquisition |  |  |  | among the tales | tree rules |
| 3 | **mind** |  | the peasants |  |  |  |  |  | nom mind «cognition transitive»: poss=agent |

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**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.

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