---
title: disperse — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «disperse» in the school dictionary: To disperse is to go away in different directions, or to make a crowd do this. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# disperse

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** crowd, wind, Birds, prism, Police, smell · **What happens:** disperse, be, make, do, spread, split · **To what, where:** different directions, crowd, this, something, area, colours · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«disperse» in the school dictionary: its 4 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: [disperse in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/disperse.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To disperse is to go away in different directions, or to make a crowd do this.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:m1:1
# text = To disperse is to go away in different directions, or to make a crowd do this.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	disperse	disperse	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	go	go	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	away	away	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	different	different	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	directions	direction	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
11	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
12	to	to	PART	TO	_	13	mark	_	_
13	make	make	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	crowd	crowd	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	obj	_	_
16	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	13	xcomp	_	_
17	this	this	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	16	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  | different directions |  | away, go *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | a crowd |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **do** | infinitive | a crowd *not said here* | this |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent this=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.

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To spread something widely over an area.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:m2:1
# text = To spread something widely over an area.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	spread	spread	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	obj	_	_
4	widely	widely	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
5	over	over	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	area	area	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **spread** | to-infinitive |  | something |  | a area |  | widely *property* | vn spray-9.7-1 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent something=Theme over area=Destination |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
For light, to split into its colours, as in a prism.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:m3:1
# text = For light, to split into its colours, as in a prism.
1	For	for	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	split	split	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	colours	colour	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
10	as	as	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	prism	prism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **split** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | into light's colours *result*; for light; as a prism | vn break-45.1 «NP V PP.result»: agent=Patient into colour=Result |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
For fog, cloud or smoke, to thin out and disappear.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:m4:1
# text = For fog, cloud or smoke, to thin out and disappear.
1	For	for	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	fog	fog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
4	cloud	cloud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	smoke	smoke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	thin	thin	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	parataxis	_	_
10	out	out	ADP	RP	_	9	compound:prt	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	disappear	disappear	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disappear** | infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
After the match, the crowd slowly dispersed.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x1:1
# text = After the match, the crowd slowly dispersed.
1	After	after	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	match	match	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	crowd	crowd	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj:pass	_	_
7	slowly	slowly	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	dispersed	disperse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | participle · passive |  | the crowd |  |  | after the match | slowly *property* | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: subject=Patient |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dandelion seeds are dispersed by the wind.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x2:1
# text = Dandelion seeds are dispersed by the wind.
1	Dandelion	dandelion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	seeds	seed	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	dispersed	disperse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	by	by	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	wind	wind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | present · passive | the wind | Dandelion seeds |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent subject=Patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Birds help disperse seeds by eating fruit.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x3:1
# text = Birds help disperse seeds by eating fruit.
1	Birds	bird	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	help	help	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	disperse	disperse	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	seeds	seed	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	by	by	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	eating	eat	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	advcl	_	_
7	fruit	fruit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **help** | present | Birds | disperse seeds |  |  |  |  | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent seed=Beneficiary |
| 2 | **eat** | gerund | Birds *not said here* | fruit |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fruit=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
By noon, the fog had dispersed.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x4:1
# text = By noon, the fog had dispersed.
1	By	by	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	noon	noon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fog	fog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj:pass	_	_
6	had	have	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	dispersed	disperse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | past · perfect · passive |  | the fog |  |  | noon |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: subject=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A prism disperses white light into the colours of the rainbow.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x5:1
# text = A prism disperses white light into the colours of the rainbow.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	prism	prism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	disperses	disperse	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	white	white	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	colours	colour	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	rainbow	rainbow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | present | a prism | white light |  | the colours of the rainbow |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent light=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Police told the gathering to disperse.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x6:1
# text = Police told the gathering to disperse.
1	Police	police	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	told	tell	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	gathering	gathering	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	iobj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	disperse	disperse	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **tell** *speech: assert* | past | Police |  | the gathering |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Agent gathering=Recipient clause=Topic |
| 2 | **disperse** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | Police *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The smell dispersed when we opened the window.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x7:1
# text = The smell dispersed when we opened the window.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	smell	smell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	dispersed	disperse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	6	advmod	_	_
5	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	opened	open	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	window	window	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disperse** | participle |  | the smell *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **open** | past | the smell | the window |  |  |  |  | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location window=Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Immediately they cocked up their tails and dispersed among the thick forests.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:disperse:x8:1
# text = Immediately they cocked up their tails and dispersed among the thick forests.
1	Immediately	immediately	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
2	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	cocked	cock	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	up	up	ADP	RP	_	3	compound:prt	_	_
5	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	tails	tail	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	dispersed	disperse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	conj	_	_
9	among	among	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	thick	thick	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	forests	forest	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cock up** | past | they | their tails |  |  |  | immediately *property* | vn crane-40.3.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent tail=Patient |
| 2 | **disperse** | participle | they *not said here* |  |  |  |  | among the thick forests | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |

<!-- 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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