---
title: comply — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «comply» in the school dictionary: To comply is to do what a rule, law, order or request says. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# comply

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** rule, visitors, driver, toy, you, She · **What happens:** comply, be, say, mean, obey, meet · **To what, where:** it, standard, toy, room · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To comply is to do what a rule, law, order or request says.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:m1:1
# text = To comply is to do what a rule, law, order or request says.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	csubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	15	obj	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	rule	rule	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
10	law	law	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
12	order	order	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	appos	_	_
13	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	request	request	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	_
15	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | do *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | a rule and law |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent what=Topic |

<!-- .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 -->
To comply with something means to obey it or meet its standard.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:m2:1
# text = To comply with something means to obey it or meet its standard.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	csubj	_	_
3	with	with	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	obl	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
7	obey	obey	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	xcomp	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	obj	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	meet	meet	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	conj	_	_
11	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	12	nmod:poss	_	_
12	standard	standard	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | with something | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **obey** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | it |  |  |  |  | vn abide\_by-93.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Theme |
| 4 | **meet** | infinitive |  | its standard |  |  |  |  | vn meet-36.3-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent standard=Co-Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
All visitors must comply with the safety rules.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x1:1
# text = All visitors must comply with the safety rules.
1	All	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	2	det	_	_
2	visitors	visitor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	must	must	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	safety	safety	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	rules	rule	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | must | all visitors |  |  |  |  | with the safety rules | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The driver complied and pulled over.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x2:1
# text = The driver complied and pulled over.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	driver	driver	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	complied	comply	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	pulled	pull	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
6	over	over	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | past | the driver |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pull over** | past | the driver *not said here* |  |  |  |  | over *property* | vn slide-11.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The toy was taken off the shelves because it did not comply with safety standards.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x3:1
# text = The toy was taken off the shelves because it did not comply with safety standards.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	toy	toy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	taken	take	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	off	off	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	shelves	shelf	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
8	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
9	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
10	did	do	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	12	aux	_	_
11	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	12	advmod	_	_
12	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	advcl	_	_
13	with	with	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	safety	safety	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	compound	_	_
15	standards	standard	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take off** | past · passive |  | the toy |  |  |  | off the shelves | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **comply** | past · do-support | toy |  |  |  |  | with safety standards | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
If you do not comply, you will lose your break time.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x4:1
# text = If you do not comply, you will lose your break time.
1	If	if	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
2	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
3	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
4	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
7	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
8	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
9	lose	lose	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
10	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	12	nmod:poss	_	_
11	break	break	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **comply** *a condition, not said to happen* | present · do-support | you |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **lose** | future | you |  |  |  | time |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She complied with her mum's request and tidied her room.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x5:1
# text = She complied with her mum's request and tidied her room.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	complied	comply	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
4	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	's	's	PART	POS	_	5	case	_	_
7	request	request	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	tidied	tidy	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
10	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	room	room	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | past | She |  |  |  |  | with her mum's request | tree rules |
| 2 | **tidy** | past | She *not said here* | her room |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **request** |  | her mum |  |  |  |  |  | nom request «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The school complies with the new law on healthy lunches.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x6:1
# text = The school complies with the new law on healthy lunches.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	complies	comply	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	law	law	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	on	on	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	healthy	healthy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	lunches	lunch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **comply** | present | the school |  |  |  |  | with the new law on healthy lunches | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The prisoners refused to comply with the guard's orders.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x7:1
# text = The prisoners refused to comply with the guard's orders.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	prisoners	prisoner	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	refused	refuse	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	guard	guard	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	's	's	PART	POS	_	8	case	_	_
10	orders	order	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **refuse** | past | the prisoners |  |  |  |  |  | vn reject-77.2 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Agent clause=Theme |
| 2 | **not** **comply** | to-infinitive | the prisoners *not said here* |  |  |  |  | with the guard's orders | tree rules |
| 3 | **order** |  | the guard |  |  |  |  |  | nom order «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The poor Prince had been getting quite thin with anxiety and annoyance, and was only too delighted to comply with her request.

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:comply:x8:1
# text = The poor Prince had been getting quite thin with anxiety and annoyance, and was only too delighted to comply with her request.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	poor	poor	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	Prince	Prince	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
4	had	have	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
5	been	be	AUX	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	6	aux	_	_
6	getting	get	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
7	quite	quite	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	thin	thin	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	xcomp	_	_
9	with	with	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	anxiety	anxiety	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	annoyance	annoyance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
14	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
15	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	18	cop	_	_
16	only	only	ADV	RB	_	18	advmod	_	_
17	too	too	ADV	RB	_	18	advmod	_	_
18	delighted	delighted	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	conj	_	_
19	to	to	PART	TO	_	20	mark	_	_
20	comply	comply	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	18	advcl	_	_
21	with	with	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	23	nmod:poss	_	_
23	request	request	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | past · perfect · progressive | the poor Prince |  |  |  |  | thin *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **is** | past | the poor Prince *not said here* |  |  |  |  | delighted *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **comply** | to-infinitive | the poor Prince *not said here* |  |  |  |  | with her request | tree rules |
| 4 | **request** |  | her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom request «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

<!-- 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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