---
title: bat — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «bat» in the school dictionary: A bat is a small flying animal with wings of skin that comes out at night. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# bat

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** bat, that, stick, eye, Bats, He · **What happens:** fly, be, come out, hit, mean, take · **To what, where:** small flying animal, stick, ball, games, turn, surprise · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«bat» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings for a pupil and its 8 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: [bat in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/bat.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A bat is a small flying animal with wings of skin that comes out at night.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:m1:1
# text = A bat is a small flying animal with wings of skin that comes out at night.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
5	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	flying	fly	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	7	amod	_	_
7	animal	animal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
8	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	wings	wing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	skin	skin	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	_
12	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	13	nsubj	_	_
13	comes	come	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	parataxis	_	_
14	out	out	ADP	RP	_	13	compound:prt	_	_
15	at	at	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	night	night	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fly** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is a** | present | a bat | a small flying animal |  |  |  | with wings of skin | tree rules |
| 3 | **come out** | present | that |  |  |  | night |  | vn become-109.1 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Patient |

<!-- .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 bat is also a stick or club for hitting the ball in games like cricket, baseball and rounders.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:m2:1
# text = A bat is also a stick or club for hitting the ball in games like cricket, baseball and rounders.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	also	also	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	stick	stick	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	club	club	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
9	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	10	mark	_	_
10	hitting	hit	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	acl	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	ball	ball	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	_
13	in	in	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	games	game	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	obl	_	_
15	like	like	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	cricket	cricket	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
18	baseball	baseball	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	conj	_	_
19	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
20	rounders	rounder	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	16	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a bat | a stick or club |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **hit** | gerund | a stick or club *not said here* | the ball |  | games like cricket and baseball and rounders |  |  | vn throw-17.1-1 «NP V NP PP.destinations»: agent=Agent ball=Theme in game=Destination |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To bat means to take a turn at hitting the ball.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:m3:1
# text = To bat means to take a turn at hitting the ball.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	take	take	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	ccomp	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	turn	turn	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	at	at	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
9	hitting	hit	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	5	advcl	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	ball	ball	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | bat |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **take** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | a turn |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent turn=Theme |
| 3 | **hit** | gerund |  | the ball |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme ball=Co-Theme |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Not bat an eye» means to not show any surprise.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:m4:1
# text = «Not bat an eye» means to not show any surprise.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	3	advmod	_	_
3	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	eye	eye	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
7	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
9	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
10	show	show	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	_
11	any	any	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	12	det	_	_
12	surprise	surprise	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **eye** *in a quote* |  | bat |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present | a eye |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **not** **show** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | a eye *not said here* | any surprise |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent surprise=Recipient |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A bat flew out of the cave at dusk.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x1:1
# text = A bat flew out of the cave at dusk.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	flew	fly	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	out	out	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	cave	cave	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	dusk	dusk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fly out** | past | a bat | the cave at dusk |  |  |  |  | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location cave=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Bats hang upside down when they sleep.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x2:1
# text = Bats hang upside down when they sleep.
1	Bats	bat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	hang	hang	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	upside	upside	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
4	down	down	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
5	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	7	mark	_	_
6	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	sleep	sleep	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hang down** | present | Bats | upside |  |  |  | down *property* | vn poison-42.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent upside=Patient |
| 2 | **sleep** | present | Bats *= bat* |  |  |  |  |  | vn snooze-40.4-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Bats find insects in the dark using echoes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x3:1
# text = Bats find insects in the dark using echoes.
1	Bats	bat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	find	find	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	insects	insect	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	dark	dark	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	using	use	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	advcl	_	_
8	echoes	echo	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **find** | present | Bats | insects |  | the dark |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent insect=Topic |
| 2 | **use** | gerund | Bats *not said here* | echoes |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent echo=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He hit the ball hard with the cricket bat.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x4:1
# text = He hit the ball hard with the cricket bat.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	hit	hit	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	ball	ball	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	hard	hard	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	2	advmod	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	cricket	cricket	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hit** | past | He | the ball |  |  |  | with the cricket bat; hard *property* | vn hit-18.1-1 «NP V NP PP.instrument»: agent=Agent ball=Patient with bat=Instrument |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's your turn to bat!

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x5:1
# text = It's your turn to bat!
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	turn	turn	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	acl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | your turn |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She batted first for her team.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x6:1
# text = She batted first for her team.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	batted	bat	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	first	first	ADV	RB	NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	2	advmod	_	_
4	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	team	team	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bat** | past | She |  |  |  |  | for her team; first *property* | vn crane-40.3.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Never pick up a bat; tell an adult.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x7:1
# text = Never pick up a bat; tell an adult.
1	Never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	2	advmod	_	_
2	pick	pick	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	up	up	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	bat	bat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
7	tell	tell	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	adult	adult	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **pick up** | imperative | you *not said here* | a bat |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bat=Topic |
| 2 | **tell** *speech: assert* | infinitive | you *not said here* |  | a adult |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent adult=Recipient |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Bats are the only mammals that can truly fly.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bat:x8:1
# text = Bats are the only mammals that can truly fly.
1	Bats	bat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	only	only	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	mammals	mammal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
6	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	9	nsubj	_	_
7	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
8	truly	truly	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
9	fly	fly	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Bats | the only mammals |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **fly** | can | the only mammals |  |  |  |  | truly *property* | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

<!-- 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 -->
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