---
title: crossbow — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «crossbow» in the school dictionary: A weapon made of a small bow fixed across a wooden stock, which shoots short arrows called bolts when you pull a trigger. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# crossbow

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** wooden stock, short arrows, you, Medieval soldiers, crossbow bolt, Crossbows · **What happens:** make, fix, shoot, call, pull, fire · **To what, where:** weapon, small bow, wooden stock, short arrows, bolts, trigger · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A weapon made of a small bow fixed across a wooden stock, which shoots short arrows called bolts when you pull a trigger.

<!-- fold The tree, 23 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:m1:1
# text = A weapon made of a small bow fixed across a wooden stock, which shoots short arrows called bolts when you pull a trigger.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	weapon	weapon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	made	make	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	bow	bow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	fixed	fix	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	acl	_	_
9	across	across	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	wooden	wooden	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	stock	stock	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	15	nsubj	_	_
15	shoots	shoot	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	acl:relcl	_	_
16	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	arrows	arrow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obj	_	_
18	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	17	acl	_	_
19	bolts	bolt	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	18	xcomp	_	_
20	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	22	advmod	_	_
21	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	22	nsubj	_	_
22	pull	pull	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	advcl	_	_
23	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	24	det	_	_
24	trigger	trigger	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	22	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
25	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | participle |  | a weapon *not said here* |  |  |  | of a small bow | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset |
| 2 | **fix** | participle |  | a small bow *not said here* |  | a wooden stock |  |  | vn shake-22.3-2 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Patient |
| 3 | **shoot** | present | a wooden stock | short arrows |  |  |  |  | vn throw-17.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent arrow=Theme |
| 4 | **call** | participle | short arrows *not said here* | bolts |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 5 | **pull** | present | you | a trigger |  |  |  |  | vn push-12-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent trigger=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.

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Medieval soldiers fired crossbows at the castle walls.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x1:1
# text = Medieval soldiers fired crossbows at the castle walls.
1	Medieval	medieval	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	soldiers	soldier	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	fired	fire	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	crossbows	crossbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	castle	castle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	walls	wall	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fire** | past | Medieval soldiers | crossbows |  | the castle walls |  |  | vn throw-17.1-1 «NP V NP PP.destinations»: agent=Agent crossbow=Theme at wall=Destination |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A crossbow bolt is shorter than an arrow.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x2:1
# text = A crossbow bolt is shorter than an arrow.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	crossbow	crossbow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	bolt	bolt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	shorter	short	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
6	than	than	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	arrow	arrow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | a crossbow bolt |  |  |  |  | than a arrow; short *property* | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Crossbows were slower to reload than longbows.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x3:1
# text = Crossbows were slower to reload than longbows.
1	Crossbows	crossbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	slower	slow	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	reload	reload	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	csubj	_	_
6	than	than	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	longbows	longbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | Crossbows |  |  |  |  | slow *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **reload** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | than longbows | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The museum had a crossbow from the 1400s.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x4:1
# text = The museum had a crossbow from the 1400s.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	museum	museum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	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	crossbow	crossbow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	1400s	1400	NOUN	NNS	Number=Ptan|NumForm=Combi|NumType=Card	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | the museum | a crossbow |  | the 1400s |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent crossbow=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Crossbows are dangerous weapons, not toys.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x5:1
# text = Crossbows are dangerous weapons, not toys.
1	Crossbows	crossbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	dangerous	dangerous	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	weapons	weapon	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
6	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	7	advmod	_	_
7	toys	toy	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Crossbows | dangerous weapons and toys |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In ancient China, people also used crossbows.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x6:1
# text = In ancient China, people also used crossbows.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	ancient	ancient	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	China	China	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
6	also	also	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	used	use	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	crossbows	crossbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | past | people | crossbows |  | ancient China |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent crossbow=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Both portraits had many holes in them, because the baron's sons used the two old people as targets for their crossbows.

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:crossbow:x7:1
# text = Both portraits had many holes in them, because the baron's sons used the two old people as targets for their crossbows.
1	Both	both	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	2	det	_	_
2	portraits	portrait	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	holes	hole	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
9	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	14	mark	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	baron	baron	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	's	's	PART	POS	_	11	case	_	_
13	sons	son	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	nsubj	_	_
14	used	use	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
16	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	18	nummod	_	_
17	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obj	_	_
19	as	as	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
20	targets	target	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obl	_	_
21	for	for	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	23	nmod:poss	_	_
23	crossbows	crossbow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	20	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | both portraits | many holes |  |  |  | in holes *= hole* | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent hole=Patient |
| 2 | **use** | past | the baron's sons | the two old people |  |  |  | as targets for sons's crossbows | vn spend\_time-104 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Agent people=Duration as target=Attribute |

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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.

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