---
title: cicada — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «cicada» in the school dictionary: A cicada is a large insect with clear wings and big eyes that lives in warm places; male cicadas make a very loud buzzing or clicking song in summer. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# cicada

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** cicada, big eyes, male cicadas, Young cicadas, cicadas, We · **What happens:** be, live, make, click, climb out, shed · **To what, where:** large insect, warm places, loud buzzing, song, skin, adults

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A cicada is a large insect with clear wings and big eyes that lives in warm places; male cicadas make a very loud buzzing or clicking song in summer.

<!-- fold The tree, 29 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:m1:1
# text = A cicada is a large insect with clear wings and big eyes that lives in warm places; male cicadas make a very loud buzzing or clicking song in summer.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	cicada	cicada	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	insect	insect	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	clear	clear	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	wings	wing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
11	big	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	eyes	eye	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	conj	_	_
13	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	14	nsubj	_	_
14	lives	live	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	acl:relcl	_	_
15	in	in	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
16	warm	warm	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	places	place	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	21	punct	_	_
19	male	male	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
20	cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	21	nsubj	_	_
21	make	make	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	parataxis	_	_
22	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	25	det	_	_
23	very	very	ADV	RB	_	24	advmod	_	_
24	loud	loud	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	25	amod	_	_
25	buzzing	buzzing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	obj	_	_
26	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	27	cc	_	_
27	clicking	click	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	25	conj	_	_
28	song	song	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	27	obj	_	_
29	in	in	ADP	IN	_	30	case	_	_
30	summer	summer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	27	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a cicada | a large insect |  |  |  | with clear wings and big eyes | tree rules |
| 2 | **live** | present | big eyes |  |  | warm places |  |  | vn lodge-46 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in place=Location |
| 3 | **make** | present | male cicadas | a loud buzzing |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset buzzing=Product |
| 4 | **click** | gerund | male cicadas *not said here* | song |  |  | summer |  | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location song=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 -->
Young cicadas (nymphs) live underground for years, then climb out, shed their skin and become adults.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:m2:1
# text = Young cicadas (nymphs) live underground for years, then climb out, shed their skin and become adults.
1	Young	young	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
3	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	nymphs	nymph	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	4	punct	_	_
6	live	live	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	underground	underground	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
8	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	then	then	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	12	advmod	_	_
12	climb	climb	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	conj	_	_
13	out	out	ADP	RP	_	12	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
15	shed	shed	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	12	advcl	_	_
16	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	17	nmod:poss	_	_
17	skin	skin	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obj	_	_
18	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	19	cc	_	_
19	become	become	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	conj	_	_
20	adults	adult	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	19	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | present | Young cicadas |  |  |  | year | underground *property* | vn exist-47.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **climb out** | infinitive | Young cicadas *not said here* |  |  |  | then |  | vn run-51.3.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **shed** | past | Young cicadas *not said here* | cicadas's skin |  |  |  |  | vn substance\_emission-43.4-1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location skin=Source |
| 4 | **become** | present | Young cicadas *not said here* | adults |  |  |  |  | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The cicadas sang loudly all through the hot afternoon.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x1:1
# text = The cicadas sang loudly all through the hot afternoon.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	sang	sing	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	loudly	loudly	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
5	all	all	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
6	through	through	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	hot	hot	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	afternoon	afternoon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sing** *speech: express* | past | the cicadas |  |  |  | afternoon | loudly *property* | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We found an empty cicada shell stuck to the tree.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x2:1
# text = We found an empty cicada shell stuck to the tree.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	found	find	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
4	empty	empty	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
5	cicada	cicada	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	shell	shell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
7	stuck	stick	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	acl	_	_
8	to	to	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **find** | past | We | a empty cicada shell |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent shell=Topic |
| 2 | **stick** | participle |  | a empty cicada shell *not said here* |  |  |  | to the tree | vn shake-22.3-2 «NP V NP PP»: agent=Agent to tree=Co-Patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Periodical cicadas come out every 17 years in some parts of the USA.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x3:1
# text = Periodical cicadas come out every 17 years in some parts of the USA.
1	Periodical	periodical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	come	come	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	out	out	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
5	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	7	det	_	_
6	17	17	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
7	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl:unmarked	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	10	det	_	_
10	parts	part	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	USA	USA	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **come out** | present | Periodical cicadas |  |  |  | year | out *property* | vn become-109.1 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Male cicadas make sound with drum-like parts on their bodies.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x4:1
# text = Male cicadas make sound with drum-like parts on their bodies.
1	Male	male	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	make	make	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
6	drum	drum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	like	like	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	parts	part	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
10	on	on	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	12	nmod:poss	_	_
12	bodies	body	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | Male cicadas | sound |  |  |  | with like parts on cicadas's bodies | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset sound=Product |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In Australia, the Green Grocer cicada is bright green.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x5:1
# text = In Australia, the Green Grocer cicada is bright green.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	Australia	Australia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
5	Green	green	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	Grocer	Grocer	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	cicada	cicada	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
9	bright	bright	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	green	green	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	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 | the Green Grocer cicada |  |  | Australia |  | green *property* | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cicadas suck sap from trees.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x6:1
# text = Cicadas suck sap from trees.
1	Cicadas	cicada	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	suck	suck	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	sap	SAP	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
4	from	from	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **suck** | present | Cicadas | sap |  | trees |  |  | vn wipe\_manner-10.4.1-1 «NP V NP PP.source»: agent=Agent sap=Theme from tree=Source |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The cicada nymph lived underground for years.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:cicada:x7:1
# text = The cicada nymph lived underground for years.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	cicada	cicada	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	nymph	nymph	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	lived	live	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	underground	underground	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | past | the cicada nymph |  |  |  | year | underground *property* | vn exist-47.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

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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.

<!-- /div -->

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