---
title: curie — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «curie» in the school dictionary: Marie Curie was a scientist born in Poland who worked in France; she discovered the elements radium and polonium, studied radioactivity, and was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win two in different sciences. Pierre Curie was her husband 
---

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# curie

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Marie, Poland, Pierre, curie, old unit, notebooks · **What happens:** be, bear, work, discover, study, win · **To what, where:** scientist, Poland, elements radium, radioactivity, first woman, Nobel Prize

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: a name — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Marie Curie was a scientist born in Poland who worked in France; she discovered the elements radium and polonium, studied radioactivity, and was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win two in different sciences. Pierre Curie was her husband and work partner.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Marie Curie was a scientist born in Poland who worked in France; she discovered the elements radium and polonium, studied radioactivity, and was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win two in different sciences.

<!-- fold The tree, 41 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:m1:1
# text = Marie Curie was a scientist born in Poland who worked in France; she discovered the elements radium and polonium, studied radioactivity, and was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win two in different sciences.
1	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
2	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	flat	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	scientist	scientist	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	born	bear	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	acl	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	Poland	Poland	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
9	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	10	nsubj	_	_
10	worked	work	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	8	acl:relcl	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	France	France	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	15	punct	_	_
14	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	15	nsubj	_	_
15	discovered	discover	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	elements	element	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	18	compound	_	_
18	radium	radium	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obj	_	_
19	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
20	polonium	polonium	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	22	punct	_	_
22	studied	study	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	15	conj	_	_
23	radioactivity	radioactivity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	22	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	29	punct	_	_
25	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	29	cc	_	_
26	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	29	cop	_	_
27	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	29	det	_	_
28	first	first	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	29	amod	_	_
29	woman	woman	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obl	_	_
30	to	to	PART	TO	_	31	mark	_	_
31	win	win	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	29	acl	_	_
32	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	34	det	_	_
33	Nobel	Nobel	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	34	compound	_	_
34	Prize	Prize	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	31	obj	_	_
35	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	38	cc	_	_
36	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	38	det	_	_
37	first	first	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	38	amod	_	_
38	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	34	conj	_	_
39	to	to	PART	TO	_	40	mark	_	_
40	win	win	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	38	acl	_	_
41	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	40	obj	_	_
42	in	in	ADP	IN	_	44	case	_	_
43	different	different	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	44	amod	_	_
44	sciences	science	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	40	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
45	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | Marie | a scientist |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **bear** | participle |  | a scientist *not said here* |  | Poland |  |  | vn admire-31.2 «NP V that S»: agent=Experiencer |
| 3 | **work** | past | Poland |  |  |  |  | in France | vn employment-95.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent in france=Theme |
| 4 | **discover** | past | Marie | the elements radium and polonium |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent radium=Topic |
| 5 | **study** | past | Marie *not said here* | radioactivity |  |  |  |  | vn learn-14-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent radioactivity=Topic |
| 6 | **is a** | past |  | the first woman |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 7 | **win** | to-infinitive | Marie *not said here* | a Nobel Prize and the first person |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent prize=Eventuality |
| 8 | **win** | to-infinitive | Marie *not said here* | two |  | different sciences |  |  | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent two=Eventuality |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* Pierre Curie was her husband and work partner.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:m1:2
# text = Pierre Curie was her husband and work partner.
1	Pierre	Pierre	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
2	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	flat	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	husband	husband	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
7	work	work	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	partner	partner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | Pierre | Pierre's husband and work partner |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A curie is an old unit for measuring radioactivity, named after the Curies.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:m2:1
# text = A curie is an old unit for measuring radioactivity, named after the Curies.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	curie	curie	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	unit	unit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
8	measuring	measure	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	acl	_	_
9	radioactivity	radioactivity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	named	name	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	conj	_	_
12	after	after	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	Curies	curie	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a curie | a old unit |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **measure** | gerund | a old unit *not said here* | radioactivity |  |  |  |  | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme radioactivity=Value |
| 3 | **name** | participle | a curie *not said here* |  |  |  | after the Curies |  | vn appoint-29.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Marie Curie won two Nobel Prizes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x1:1
# text = Marie Curie won two Nobel Prizes.
1	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	flat	_	_
3	won	win	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	6	nummod	_	_
5	Nobel	Nobel	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	Prizes	Prize	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **win** | past | Marie | two Nobel Prizes |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent prize=Eventuality |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Marie and Pierre Curie discovered radium.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x2:1
# text = Marie and Pierre Curie discovered radium.
1	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
2	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	3	cc	_	_
3	Pierre	Pierre	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	conj	_	_
4	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	flat	_	_
5	discovered	discover	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	radium	radium	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **discover** | past | Marie and Pierre | radium |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent radium=Topic |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Marie Curie studied radioactivity.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x3:1
# text = Marie Curie studied radioactivity.
1	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	flat	_	_
3	studied	study	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	radioactivity	radioactivity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **study** | past | Marie | radioactivity |  |  |  |  | vn learn-14-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent radioactivity=Topic |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her notebooks are still radioactive and are kept in lead boxes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x4:1
# text = Her notebooks are still radioactive and are kept in lead boxes.
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	notebooks	notebook	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
3	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	still	still	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	radioactive	radioactive	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
7	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	aux:pass	_	_
8	kept	keep	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	conj	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	lead	lead	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	boxes	box	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Her notebooks |  |  |  | still | radioactive *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **keep** | present · passive | Her notebooks *not said here* |  |  | lead boxes |  |  | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP PP.location»: in box=Location |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Marie Curie was born in Poland.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x5:1
# text = Marie Curie was born in Poland.
1	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	flat	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	born	bear	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	Poland	Poland	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bear** | past · passive |  | Marie |  | Poland |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The Marie Curie charity helps people at the end of their lives.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x6:1
# text = The Marie Curie charity helps people at the end of their lives.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
2	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	compound	_	_
4	charity	charity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	helps	help	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	end	end	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	12	nmod:poss	_	_
12	lives	life	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **help** | present | the Curie charity |  | people |  | at the end of people's lives |  | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent people=Beneficiary |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Radioactivity can be measured in curies.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x7:1
# text = Radioactivity can be measured in curies.
1	Radioactivity	radioactivity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	measured	measure	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	curies	curie	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **measure** | can · passive |  | Radioactivity |  | curies |  |  | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: subject=Value |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We dressed up as Marie Curie for our science day.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:curie:x8:1
# text = We dressed up as Marie Curie for our science day.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	dressed	dress	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	up	up	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	as	as	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	Marie	Marie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	Curie	Curie	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	for	for	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
9	science	science	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	day	day	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **dress up** | past | We |  |  |  | day | as Marie Curie | vn dress-41.1.1-1-1 «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 -->

<!-- pn -->
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