---
title: diatom — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «diatom» in the school dictionary: A tiny one-celled living thing, a kind of algae, that lives in water and has a glassy shell made of silica. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# diatom

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** that, diatoms, we, diatom, Small sea creatures, class · **What happens:** cell, live, have, make, breathe, be · **To what, where:** water, glassy shell, large part, oxygen, food, oceans · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A tiny one-celled living thing, a kind of algae, that lives in water and has a glassy shell made of silica.

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:m1:1
# text = A tiny one-celled living thing, a kind of algae, that lives in water and has a glassy shell made of silica.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
2	tiny	tiny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
3	one	one	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	celled	cell	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	amod	_	_
6	living	living	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	thing	thing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	kind	kind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	appos	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	algae	alga	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	15	nsubj	_	_
15	lives	live	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	parataxis	_	_
16	in	in	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
17	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obl	_	_
18	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	19	cc	_	_
19	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	15	conj	_	_
20	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
21	glassy	glassy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	22	amod	_	_
22	shell	shell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obj	_	_
23	made	make	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	22	acl	_	_
24	of	of	ADP	IN	_	25	case	_	_
25	silica	silica	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cell** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **live** | present | that |  |  | water |  |  | vn lodge-46 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in water=Location |
| 3 | **have** | present | that *not said here* | a glassy shell |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent shell=Patient |
| 4 | **make** | participle |  | a glassy shell *not said here* |  |  |  | of silica | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset |

<!-- .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: science — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
diatoms make a large part of the oxygen we breathe and are food for many sea animals.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:m2:1
# text = diatoms make a large part of the oxygen we breathe and are food for many sea animals.
1	diatoms	diatom	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	make	make	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	oxygen	oxygen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
9	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	breathe	breathe	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	acl:relcl	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
12	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	cop	_	_
13	food	food	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	_
14	for	for	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
15	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
16	sea	sea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	compound	_	_
17	animals	animal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | diatoms | a large part of the oxygen |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset part=Product |
| 2 | **breathe** | present | we | the oxygen *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn breathe-40.1.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent oxygen=Theme |
| 3 | **is a** | present | we *not said here* | food |  |  |  | for many sea animals | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Under the microscope, the diatom looked like a tiny glass jewel.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x1:1
# text = Under the microscope, the diatom looked like a tiny glass jewel.
1	Under	under	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	microscope	microscope	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	diatom	diatom	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	looked	look	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	like	like	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
10	tiny	tiny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
11	glass	glass	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	jewel	jewel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **look** | past | the diatom |  |  |  |  | like a tiny glass jewel; under the microscope | vn peer-30.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent under microscope=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Diatoms float in oceans, lakes and rivers.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x2:1
# text = Diatoms float in oceans, lakes and rivers.
1	Diatoms	diatom	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	float	float	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	in	in	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	oceans	ocean	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
6	lakes	lake	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	rivers	river	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **float** | present | Diatoms |  |  | oceans and lakes and rivers |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in ocean=Trajectory |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Diatoms make oxygen using sunlight, like plants.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x3:1
# text = Diatoms make oxygen using sunlight, like plants.
1	Diatoms	diatom	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	make	make	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	oxygen	oxygen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
4	using	use	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	advcl	_	_
5	sunlight	sunlight	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	like	like	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	plants	plant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | Diatoms | oxygen |  |  |  | like plants | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset oxygen=Product |
| 2 | **use** | gerund | Diatoms *not said here* | sunlight |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent sunlight=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Small sea creatures eat diatoms.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x4:1
# text = Small sea creatures eat diatoms.
1	Small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
2	sea	sea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	creatures	creature	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	eat	eat	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	diatoms	diatom	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **eat** | present | Small sea creatures | diatoms |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent diatom=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Our class drew different diatom shapes: circles, boats and stars.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x5:1
# text = Our class drew different diatom shapes: circles, boats and stars.
1	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	class	class	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	drew	draw	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	different	different	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
5	diatom	diatom	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	shapes	shape	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	8	punct	_	_
8	circles	circle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
10	boats	boat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	conj	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	stars	star	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **draw** | past | Our class | different diatom shapes and circles and boats and stars |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent shape=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Old diatom shells pile up on the sea floor over millions of years.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x6:1
# text = Old diatom shells pile up on the sea floor over millions of years.
1	Old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
2	diatom	diatom	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	shells	shell	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	pile	pile	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	up	up	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	on	on	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	sea	sea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	floor	floor	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
10	over	over	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	millions	million	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
12	of	of	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
13	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pile up** | present | Old diatom shells |  |  | the sea floor |  | over millions of years | vn spray-9.7-1-1 «NP V PP.destination»: agent=Theme on floor=Destination |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Scientists study diatoms to learn how clean a river is.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:diatom:x7:1
# text = Scientists study diatoms to learn how clean a river is.
1	Scientists	scientist	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	study	study	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	diatoms	diatom	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	learn	learn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
6	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
7	clean	clean	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	ccomp	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	river	river	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **study** | present | Scientists | diatoms |  |  |  |  | vn learn-14-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent diatom=Topic |
| 2 | **learn** | to-infinitive | Scientists *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn learn-14-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** | present | a river |  |  |  |  | clean *property* | tree rules |

<!-- 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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