---
title: couple — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «couple» in the school dictionary: A couple is 2 people who are together, like a married pair. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# couple

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** couple, 2 people, 8 couples, She, I, old couple · **What happens:** be, mean, buy, eat, bring, live · **To what, where:** 2 people, two, few, 2 tickets, dance, couple · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«couple» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings for a pupil and its 9 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: [couple in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/couple.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A couple is 2 people who are together, like a married pair.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:m1:1
# text = A couple is 2 people who are together, like a married pair.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	2	2	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	5	nummod	_	_
5	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
6	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
7	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
8	together	together	ADV	RB	_	5	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
10	like	like	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
12	married	married	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	pair	pair	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a couple | 2 people and a married pair |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is** | present | 2 people and a married pair |  |  |  |  | together *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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 couple of things means two of them.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:m2:1
# text = A couple of things means two of them.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nmod	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	5	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

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

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In everyday talk, «a couple of» can mean a few.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:m3:1
# text = In everyday talk, «a couple of» can mean a few.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	everyday	everyday	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	talk	talk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	7	punct	_	_
10	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	11	aux	_	_
11	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	few	few	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | can | a couple | a few |  |  |  | in everyday talk | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot few=Theme in talk=Attribute |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To couple is to join two things, like train cars.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:m4:1
# text = To couple is to join two things, like train cars.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	advcl	_	_
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	join	join	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
7	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
9	like	like	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	train	train	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	cars	car	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A couple bought 2 tickets each.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x1:1
# text = A couple bought 2 tickets each.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	bought	buy	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	2	2	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	5	nummod	_	_
5	tickets	ticket	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	each	each	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	5	nmod:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **buy** | participle | a couple | 2 tickets  each |  |  |  |  | vn accept-77.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent ticket=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There are 8 couples at the dance, so 16 people.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x2:1
# text = There are 8 couples at the dance, so 16 people.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	_
2	are	be	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	8	8	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	couples	couple	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	dance	dance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
9	so	so	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
10	16	16	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **does** | present | 8 couples |  |  | the dance; there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme at dance=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She ate a couple of cookies.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x3:1
# text = She ate a couple of cookies.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	ate	eat	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	cookies	cookie	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **eat** | past | She | a couple of cookies |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent couple=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Each couple brought a dish.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x4:1
# text = Each couple brought a dish.
1	Each	each	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	brought	bring	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	dish	dish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bring** | past | each couple | a dish |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3-1 «NP V NP together»: agent=Agent dish=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I'll be ready in a couple of minutes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x5:1
# text = I'll be ready in a couple of minutes.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'll	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	cop	_	_
4	ready	ready	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	minutes	minute	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | future | I |  |  | a couple of minutes |  | ready *property* | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
An old couple lives next door.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x6:1
# text = An old couple lives next door.
1	An	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	lives	live	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	next	next	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	door	door	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | present | a old couple | next door |  |  |  |  | vn lodge-46 «NP V ADV»: agent=Theme door=Location |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The couple danced together.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x7:1
# text = The couple danced together.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	danced	dance	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	together	together	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **dance** | past | the couple |  |  |  |  | together *property* | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The train cars are coupled together.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x8:1
# text = The train cars are coupled together.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	train	train	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	cars	car	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux:pass	_	_
5	coupled	couple	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
6	together	together	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **couple** | present · passive |  | the train cars |  |  |  | together *property* | vn amalgamate-22.2-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The couple had one boy called Jem.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:couple:x9:1
# text = The couple had one boy called Jem.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	couple	couple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	5	nummod	_	_
5	boy	boy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	acl	_	_
7	Jem	Jem	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | the couple | one boy |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent boy=Patient |
| 2 | **call** | participle |  | one boy *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V»: agent=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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