---
title: bce — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «bce» in the school dictionary: BCE stands for «Before the Common Era», used after a year number to show years counted backwards from the start of the usual calendar; it means the same as BC («before Christ»). Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# bce

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** BCE, calendar, partner, CE, years, book · **What happens:** stand, use, show, count, mean, start · **To what, where:** Common Era, years, start, same, usual calendar, CE

<!-- .vabout -->
«bce» in the school dictionary: its 2 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: [bce in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/bce.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
BCE stands for «Before the Common Era», used after a year number to show years counted backwards from the start of the usual calendar; it means the same as BC («before Christ»).

<!-- fold The tree, 32 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:m1:1
# text = BCE stands for «Before the Common Era», used after a year number to show years counted backwards from the start of the usual calendar; it means the same as BC («before Christ»).
1	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	stands	stand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	for	for	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	Before	before	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	Common	Common	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	Era	Era	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	acl	_	_
12	after	after	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
14	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	compound	_	_
15	number	number	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obl	_	_
16	to	to	PART	TO	_	17	mark	_	_
17	show	show	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	advcl	_	_
18	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	17	obj	_	_
19	counted	count	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	18	acl	_	_
20	backwards	backwards	ADV	RB	_	19	advmod	_	_
21	from	from	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	23	det	_	_
23	start	start	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obl	_	_
24	of	of	ADP	IN	_	27	case	_	_
25	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	27	det	_	_
26	usual	usual	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	27	amod	_	_
27	calendar	calendar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	30	punct	_	_
29	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	30	nsubj	_	_
30	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	parataxis	_	_
31	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	32	det	_	_
32	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	30	obj	_	_
33	as	as	ADP	IN	_	34	case	_	_
34	BC	BC	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	30	obl	_	_
35	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	38	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
36	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	38	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
37	before	before	ADP	IN	_	38	case	_	_
38	Christ	Christ	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	34	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
39	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	38	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
40	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	38	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
41	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stand** | present | BCE |  |  |  |  | for the Common Era | vn admire-31.2 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Experiencer for era=Attribute |
| 2 | **use** | participle |  | the Common Era *not said here* |  |  | after a year number |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **show** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  | year |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **count** | participle |  | years *not said here* |  | the start of the usual calendar |  | backwards *property* | vn matter-91 «NP V»: agent=Stimulus |
| 5 | **mean** | present | calendar | the same |  |  |  | as BC | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Agent same=Topic as bc=Attribute |
| 6 | **start** |  |  | the usual calendar |  |  |  |  | nom start «event transitive»: of=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 -->
Its partner is CE («Common Era»), which means the same as AD.

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:m2:1
# text = Its partner is CE («Common Era»), which means the same as AD.
1	Its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	partner	partner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	CE	ce	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	Common	Common	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	Era	Era	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
12	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	13	nsubj	_	_
13	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	parataxis	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	obj	_	_
16	as	as	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
17	AD	ad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Its partner | CE |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present | CE | the same |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent same=Topic |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The pyramids of Giza were built more than two thousand years BCE.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x1:1
# text = The pyramids of Giza were built more than two thousand years BCE.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pyramids	pyramid	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	Giza	Giza	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux:pass	_	_
6	built	build	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
7	more	more	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp|ExtPos=ADV	10	advmod	_	_
8	than	than	ADP	IN	_	7	fixed	_	_
9	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	10	compound	_	_
10	thousand	thousand	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obl:unmarked	_	_
12	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **build** | past · passive |  | the pyramids of Giza |  |  | year |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: subject=Product |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
On our timeline, years BCE are on the left.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x2:1
# text = On our timeline, years BCE are on the left.
1	On	on	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	timeline	timeline	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nsubj	_	_
6	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	appos	_	_
7	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
8	on	on	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	left	left	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | years |  |  | the left |  | on our timeline | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
BCE means the same as BC.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x3:1
# text = BCE means the same as BC.
1	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	obj	_	_
5	as	as	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	BC	BC	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | BCE | the same |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent same=Topic |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The bigger the number BCE, the longer ago it was.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x4:1
# text = The bigger the number BCE, the longer ago it was.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	bigger	big	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	number	number	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	longer	long	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	9	advmod	_	_
9	ago	ago	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	11	nsubj	_	_
11	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past |  |  |  |  |  | ago, long *property* | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ancient Rome was founded many centuries BCE.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x5:1
# text = Ancient Rome was founded many centuries BCE.
1	Ancient	ancient	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	Rome	Rome	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	founded	found	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	centuries	century	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
7	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl:agent	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **found** | past · passive | BCE | Ancient Rome |  |  | century |  | vn establish-55.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent subject=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Our book uses BCE and CE instead of BC and AD.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x6:1
# text = Our book uses BCE and CE instead of BC and AD.
1	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	book	book	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	uses	use	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	CE	CE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
7	instead	instead	ADV	RB	ExtPos=ADP	9	case	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	fixed	_	_
9	BC	BC	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	AD	ad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | present | Our book | BCE and CE |  |  |  | instead BC and AD | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bce=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stonehenge was built in the Stone Age, thousands of years BCE.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x7:1
# text = Stonehenge was built in the Stone Age, thousands of years BCE.
1	Stonehenge	Stonehenge	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	built	build	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	Stone	Stone	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	Age	Age	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	thousands	thousand	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nmod	_	_
12	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **build** | past · passive |  | Stonehenge |  |  | in the Stone Age | thousands of years  BCE *obl* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: subject=Product |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There is no year zero between 1 BCE and 1 CE.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bce:x8:1
# text = There is no year zero between 1 BCE and 1 CE.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	_
2	is	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	det	_	_
4	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	zero	zero	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	flat	_	_
6	between	between	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	1	1	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	5	nmod	_	_
8	BCE	BCE	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	nmod:unmarked	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
10	1	1	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	CE	ce	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **does** | present | no year and 1 CE |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «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 -->

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