---
title: fuss — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «fuss» in the school dictionary: A fuss is a lot of worry, excitement or complaining about something, often something small. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# fuss

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** fuss, someone, you, Grandma, we, us · **What happens:** be, complain, fuss, mean, worry, pay · **To what, where:** lot, much attention, fuss, lots, them, small scratch · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«fuss» in the school dictionary: its 3 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: [fuss in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/fuss.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A fuss is a lot of worry, excitement or complaining about something, often something small.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:m1:1
# text = A fuss is a lot of worry, excitement or complaining about something, often something small.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	lot	lot	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	worry	worry	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	excitement	excitement	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	_
10	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	complaining	complain	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	7	conj	_	_
12	about	about	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
13	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	11	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
15	often	often	ADV	RB	_	16	advmod	_	_
16	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	13	appos	_	_
17	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a fuss | a lot |  |  |  | of worry and excitement | tree rules |
| 2 | **complain** *speech: other* | gerund | a fuss *not said here* |  |  |  |  | about something | vn complain-37.8 «NP V PP.topic»: agent=Agent about something=Topic |

<!-- .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 fuss means to worry or pay too much attention to small things.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:m2:1
# text = To fuss means to worry or pay too much attention to small things.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	fuss	fuss	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	csubj	_	_
3	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	worry	worry	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	ccomp	_	_
6	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
7	pay	pay	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	conj	_	_
8	too	too	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
9	much	much	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	attention	attention	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
11	to	to	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fuss** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **worry** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |
| 4 | **pay** | infinitive |  | much attention |  |  |  | to small things | vn pay-68-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent attention=Asset |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To make a fuss of someone means to give them lots of loving attention.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:m3:1
# text = To make a fuss of someone means to give them lots of loving attention.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	csubj	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	nmod	_	_
7	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	give	give	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	ccomp	_	_
10	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	iobj	_	_
11	lots	lot	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	obj	_	_
12	of	of	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	loving	loving	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
14	attention	attention	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | a fuss of someone |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset fuss=Product |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **give** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | lots of loving attention | them *= they* |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent they=Recipient lot=Theme |
| 4 | **fuss** |  | someone |  |  |  |  |  | nom fuss «state intransitive»: of=agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Don't make a fuss — it's only a small scratch.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x1:1
# text = Don't make a fuss — it's only a small scratch.
1	Do	do	AUX	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	3	advmod	_	_
3	make	make	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	—	-	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
9	only	only	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	scratch	scratch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **make** | imperative · do-support | you *not said here* | a fuss |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset fuss=Product |
| 2 | **is a** | present | fuss | a small scratch |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What's all the fuss about?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x2:1
# text = What's all the fuss about?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	all	all	DET	PDT	PronType=Tot	5	det:predet	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	about	about	ADP	IN	_	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present |  | all fuss |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Grandma always makes a fuss of us when we visit.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x3:1
# text = Grandma always makes a fuss of us when we visit.
1	Grandma	grandma	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	3	advmod	_	_
3	makes	make	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	us	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	5	nmod	_	_
8	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	10	mark	_	_
9	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	visit	visit	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | Grandma | a fuss of us |  |  |  | always *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fuss=Product |
| 2 | **visit** | present | we |  |  |  |  |  | vn meet-36.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **fuss** |  | us |  |  |  |  |  | nom fuss «state intransitive»: of=agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He kicked up a fuss when his game was turned off.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x4:1
# text = He kicked up a fuss when his game was turned off.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	kicked	kick	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	up	up	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl:unmarked	_	_
6	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	10	mark	_	_
7	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	game	game	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
9	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	turned	turn	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	advcl	_	_
11	off	off	ADP	RP	_	10	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **kick up** | past | He | a fuss |  |  |  |  | vn split-23.2 «NP V apart»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **turn off** | past · passive |  | his game |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: subject=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stop fussing with your hair!

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x5:1
# text = Stop fussing with your hair!
1	Stop	stop	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	fussing	fuss	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	1	xcomp	_	_
3	with	with	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	hair	hair	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stop** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **fuss** | gerund | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | with your hair | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad fussed over the dinner all afternoon.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x6:1
# text = Dad fussed over the dinner all afternoon.
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	fussed	fuss	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	over	over	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	dinner	dinner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
6	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	7	det	_	_
7	afternoon	afternoon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fuss** | past | Dad |  |  | the dinner | afternoon |  | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She did her homework without any fuss.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x7:1
# text = She did her homework without any fuss.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	did	do	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	homework	homework	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	without	without	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	any	any	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	7	det	_	_
7	fuss	fuss	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 | **do** | past | She | her homework |  |  |  | without any fuss | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent homework=Eventuality |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The dog loves a fuss behind the ears.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:fuss:x8:1
# text = The dog loves a fuss behind the ears.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	loves	love	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fuss	fuss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	behind	behind	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	ears	ear	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **love** | present | the dog | a fuss |  | the ears |  |  | vn admire-31.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer fuss=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 -->

<!-- pn -->
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- ↑ back to [F in school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/F/)