---
title: dull — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «dull» in the school dictionary: Dull means boring, not interesting or exciting. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# dull

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Dull, dull blade, dull sound, something, film, I · **What happens:** mean, fade, not be, be, fall, not cut · **To what, where:** colours, dull grey morning, bread, dull thud, dull pain, tooth

<!-- .vabout -->
«dull» in the school dictionary: its 5 meanings for a pupil and its 9 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: [dull in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/dull.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dull means boring, not interesting or exciting.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:m1:1
# text = Dull means boring, not interesting or exciting.
1	Dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	boring	boring	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
6	interesting	interesting	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	conj	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	exciting	exciting	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Dull |  |  |  |  | boring *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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 -->
Dull means not bright or shiny, like a grey sky or faded colours.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:m2:1
# text = Dull means not bright or shiny, like a grey sky or faded colours.
1	Dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	bright	bright	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	xcomp	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	shiny	shiny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	like	like	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	grey	grey	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	sky	sky	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	faded	fade	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	11	conj	_	_
14	colours	colour	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Dull |  |  |  |  | bright *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **fade** | past | Dull *not said here* | colours |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent colour=Patient |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A dull blade or pencil is not sharp.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:m3:1
# text = A dull blade or pencil is not sharp.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	blade	blade	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	pencil	pencil	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	_
8	sharp	sharp	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is** | present | a dull blade or pencil |  |  |  |  | sharp *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A dull sound or pain is not sharp or clear but soft and heavy.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:m4:1
# text = A dull sound or pain is not sharp or clear but soft and heavy.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	pain	pain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	_
8	sharp	sharp	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	clear	clear	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	conj	_	_
11	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	soft	soft	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	conj	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	heavy	heavy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is** | present | a dull sound or pain |  |  |  |  | sharp *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **be** |  | a dull sound or pain *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **be** |  | a dull sound or pain *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **be** |  | a dull sound or pain *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 5 {#m5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To dull something is to make it less strong or less bright.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:m5:1
# text = To dull something is to make it less strong or less bright.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	6	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	obj	_	_
8	less	less	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	9	advmod	_	_
9	strong	strong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	xcomp	_	_
10	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
11	less	less	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	12	amod	_	_
12	bright	bright	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | something |  |  |  |  | make, strong *property* | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The film was so dull that I fell asleep.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x1:1
# text = The film was so dull that I fell asleep.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	film	film	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
6	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
7	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
8	fell	fall	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
9	asleep	asleep	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | the film |  |  |  |  | dull *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **fall** | past | I |  |  |  |  | asleep *property* | vn occur-48.3 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It was a dull, grey morning.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x2:1
# text = It was a dull, grey morning.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
4	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
6	grey	grey	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	morning	morning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | It | a dull grey morning |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
This knife is dull; it won't cut the bread.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x3:1
# text = This knife is dull; it won't cut the bread.
1	This	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	2	det	_	_
2	knife	knife	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
6	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
7	wo	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	9	advmod	_	_
9	cut	cut	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	conj	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	bread	bread	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | this knife |  |  |  |  | dull *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **cut** | future | knife | the bread |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.material V NP»: agent=Material bread=Product |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I heard a dull thud from upstairs.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x4:1
# text = I heard a dull thud from upstairs.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	heard	hear	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	thud	thud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	upstairs	upstairs	ADV	RB	_	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hear** | past | I | a dull thud |  |  |  |  | vn learn-14-2-1 «NP V NP PP.source»: agent=Agent thud=Topic from upstairs=Source |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He had a dull pain in his tooth.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x5:1
# text = He had a dull pain in his tooth.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	pain	pain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	tooth	tooth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | He | a dull pain |  | his tooth |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent pain=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Polish the dull spoons until they shine.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x6:1
# text = Polish the dull spoons until they shine.
1	Polish	polish	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	spoons	spoon	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
5	until	until	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
6	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	shine	shine	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **polish** | imperative | you *not said here* | the dull spoons |  |  |  |  | vn butter-9.9 «NP V NP.destination»: agent=Agent spoon=Destination |
| 2 | **shine** | present | spoons *= spoon* |  |  |  |  |  | vn light\_emission-43.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
With my little brother around, there's never a dull moment.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x7:1
# text = With my little brother around, there's never a dull moment.
1	With	with	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
2	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
3	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	_
5	around	around	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
7	there	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	8	expl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	's	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
9	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	12	advmod	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	moment	moment	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **be** | present | a dull moment |  |  | there |  | with my little brother | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The medicine dulled the pain.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x8:1
# text = The medicine dulled the pain.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	medicine	medicine	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	dulled	dull	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	pain	pain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **dull** | past | the medicine | the pain |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent pain=Patient |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Soon he found life in the pasture very dull.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:dull:x9:1
# text = Soon he found life in the pasture very dull.
1	Soon	soon	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	3	advmod	_	_
2	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	found	find	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	life	life	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	pasture	pasture	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	very	very	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
9	dull	dull	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **find** | past | he | life |  | the pasture |  | soon *property* | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent life=Topic |

<!-- 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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