---
title: drill — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «drill» in the school dictionary: A tool or machine for making holes in wood, metal, stone or teeth. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# drill

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** tool, We, Dad, dentist, coach, us · **What happens:** make, do, repeat, learn, train, have · **To what, where:** holes, wood, emergency, something, hole, fire drill

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A tool or machine for making holes in wood, metal, stone or teeth.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m1:1
# text = A tool or machine for making holes in wood, metal, stone or teeth.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	tool	tool	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	machine	machine	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
5	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	making	make	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	acl	_	_
7	holes	hole	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	wood	wood	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	metal	metal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
13	stone	stone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	conj	_	_
14	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
15	teeth	tooth	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | gerund | a tool or machine *not said here* | holes |  | wood and metal and stone or teeth |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset hole=Product |

<!-- .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 practice of what to do in an emergency.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m2:1
# text = A practice of what to do in an emergency.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	practice	practice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	2	nmod	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	acl	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	emergency	emergency	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **do** | to-infinitive |  |  |  | a emergency |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
The example in this meaning, parsed on its own:

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"a fire drill".

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m2e:1
# text = "a fire drill".
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	fire	fire	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	compound	_	_
4	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Repeated practice to learn something well.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m3:1
# text = Repeated practice to learn something well.
1	Repeated	repeat	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	amod	_	_
2	practice	practice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	learn	learn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	acl	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	_
6	well	well	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	4	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **repeat** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn begin-55.1-1-1 «NP.eventuality V»: agent=Eventuality |
| 2 | **learn** | to-infinitive |  | something |  |  |  | well *property* | vn learn-14-2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Topic |

<!-- .note -->
The example in this meaning, parsed on its own:

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"a spelling drill".

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m3e:1
# text = "a spelling drill".
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	spelling	spelling	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	compound	_	_
4	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
As a verb, to make a hole with a drill, or to train by repeating.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:m4:1
# text = As a verb, to make a hole with a drill, or to train by repeating.
1	As	as	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	verb	verb	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	make	make	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	hole	hole	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
9	with	with	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
13	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
14	to	to	PART	TO	_	15	mark	_	_
15	train	train	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	6	conj	_	_
16	by	by	SCONJ	IN	_	17	mark	_	_
17	repeating	repeat	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	15	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | a hole |  |  |  | as a verb; with a drill | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset hole=Product |
| 2 | **train** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn hire-13.5.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **repeat** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn begin-55.1-1-1 «NP.eventuality V»: agent=Eventuality |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We had a fire drill at school today.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x1:1
# text = We had a fire drill at school today.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	fire	fire	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
8	today	today	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | We | a fire drill |  | school | today |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent drill=Patient |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad used a drill to put up the shelf.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x2:1
# text = Dad used a drill to put up the shelf.
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	used	use	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	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	put	put	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
7	up	up	ADP	RP	_	6	compound:prt	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	shelf	shelf	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | past | Dad | a drill |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent drill=Patient |
| 2 | **put up** | to-infinitive | Dad *not said here* | the shelf |  |  |  |  | vn invest-13.5.4-1 «NP V PP»: agent=Agent shelf=Goal |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The dentist drilled out the hole in my tooth.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x3:1
# text = The dentist drilled out the hole in my tooth.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	dentist	dentist	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	drilled	drill	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	out	out	ADP	RP	_	3	compound:prt	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	hole	hole	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
9	tooth	tooth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **drill out** | participle | the dentist *not said here* | the hole |  | my tooth |  |  | vn carve-21.2-3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent hole=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The coach made us do passing drills.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x4:1
# text = The coach made us do passing drills.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	coach	coach	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	us	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	obj	_	_
5	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	passing	passing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	drills	drill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | the coach | us |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **do** | infinitive | us *not said here* | passing drills |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent drill=Eventuality |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In an earthquake drill we drop, cover and hold on.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x5:1
# text = In an earthquake drill we drop, cover and hold on.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
2	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	earthquake	earthquake	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	compound	_	_
4	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
5	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	drop	drop	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
8	cover	cover	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	conj	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	hold	hold	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	conj	_	_
11	on	on	ADP	RP	_	10	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **drop** | present | we |  |  | a earthquake drill |  |  | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V PP.trajectory»: agent=Theme in drill=Trajectory |
| 2 | **cover** | infinitive | we *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **hold on** | infinitive | we *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Workers drilled deep to find water.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x6:1
# text = Workers drilled deep to find water.
1	Workers	worker	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	drilled	drill	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	deep	deep	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	xcomp	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	find	find	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
6	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **drill** | past | Workers |  |  |  |  | deep *property* | vn carve-21.2-3 «NP V ADVP-Middle»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **find** | to-infinitive | Workers *not said here* | water |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent water=Topic |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
You know the drill: shoes off at the door.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:drill:x7:1
# text = You know the drill: shoes off at the door.
1	You	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	know	know	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	drill	drill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	6	punct	_	_
6	shoes	shoe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	_
7	off	off	ADP	RP	_	6	compound:prt	_	_
8	at	at	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	door	door	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **know** | present | You | the drill and shoes at the door |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1-1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Experiencer drill=Stimulus |

<!-- 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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