---
title: gab — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «gab» in the school dictionary: To talk a lot, quickly and often about unimportant things; to chatter. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# gab

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Gab, you, your, uncle, Grandma, They · **What happens:** talk, chatter, persuade, gift, mean, shut · **To what, where:** lot, people, gab, mouth, girls, phone · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«gab» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings for a pupil and its 6 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: [gab in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/gab.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To talk a lot, quickly and often about unimportant things; to chatter.

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:m1:1
# text = To talk a lot, quickly and often about unimportant things; to chatter.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	talk	talk	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	advcl	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	lot	lot	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
6	quickly	quickly	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	often	often	ADV	RB	_	6	conj	_	_
9	about	about	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	unimportant	unimportant	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
13	to	to	PART	TO	_	14	mark	_	_
14	chatter	chatter	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	14	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **talk** | to-infinitive |  | a lot |  |  |  | about unimportant things; quickly *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **chatter** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: 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}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Chatty talk.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:m2:1
# text = Chatty talk.
1	Chatty	chatty	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	talk	talk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

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

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«the gift of the gab» (UK) or «the gift of gab» (US): the ability to talk easily and persuade people.

<!-- fold The tree, 20 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:m3:1
# text = «the gift of the gab» (UK) or «the gift of gab» (US): the ability to talk easily and persuade people.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	UK	UK	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	9	punct	_	_
11	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
12	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
15	of	of	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	14	punct	_	_
18	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	US	US	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	23	punct	_	_
22	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	23	det	_	_
23	ability	ability	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
24	to	to	PART	TO	_	25	mark	_	_
25	talk	talk	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	23	acl	_	_
26	easily	easily	ADV	RB	_	25	advmod	_	_
27	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	28	cc	_	_
28	persuade	persuade	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	25	conj	_	_
29	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	28	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
30	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **talk** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | easily *property* | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **persuade** | infinitive |  | people |  |  |  |  | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent people=Patient |
| 3 | **gift** *in a quote* |  |  | the gab or the gift of gab  US |  |  |  |  | nom gift «possession transitive»: of=patient |
| 4 | **gift** *in a quote* |  |  | gab |  |  |  |  | nom gift «possession transitive»: of=patient |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Gab can also mean the mouth, as in "shut your gab".

<!-- fold The tree, 11 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:m4:1
# text = Gab can also mean the mouth, as in "shut your gab".
1	Gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	also	also	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	mouth	mouth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	fixed	_	_
10	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	shut	shut	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	4	parataxis	_	_
12	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	13	nmod:poss	_	_
13	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | can | Gab | the mouth |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **shut** *in a quote* | infinitive |  | your gab |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent gab=Patient |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The girls gabbed on the phone for an hour.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x1:1
# text = The girls gabbed on the phone for an hour.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	girls	girl	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
3	gabbed	gab	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	phone	phone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
7	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	hour	hour	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **gab** *speech: other* | participle |  | the girls *not said here* |  | the phone | hour |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stop gabbing and finish your work!

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x2:1
# text = Stop gabbing and finish your work!
1	Stop	stop	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	gabbing	gab	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	1	xcomp	_	_
3	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	finish	finish	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	1	conj	_	_
5	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	work	work	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	!	!	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 | **gab** *speech: other* | gerund | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **finish** | infinitive | you *not said here* | your work |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V NP.eventuality»: agent=Subeventuality work=Eventuality |
| 4 | **work** |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom work «act intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My uncle has the gift of the gab — he can sell anything.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x3:1
# text = My uncle has the gift of the gab — he can sell anything.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	uncle	uncle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
9	—	-	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
10	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
11	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	12	aux	_	_
12	sell	sell	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	parataxis	_	_
13	anything	anything	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	12	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | My uncle | the gift of the gab |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent gift=Patient |
| 2 | **sell** | can | uncle | anything |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent anything=Theme |
| 3 | **gift** |  |  | the gab |  |  |  |  | nom gift «possession transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Grandma loves a good gab with her neighbour.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x4:1
# text = Grandma loves a good gab with her neighbour.
1	Grandma	grandma	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	loves	love	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	neighbour	neighbour	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **love** | present | Grandma | a good gab |  |  |  | with Grandma's neighbour | vn admire-31.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer gab=Stimulus |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
They were gabbing so much that they missed their bus stop.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x5:1
# text = They were gabbing so much that they missed their bus stop.
1	They	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	gabbing	gab	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	much	much	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
6	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
7	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
8	missed	miss	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
9	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
10	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	stop	stop	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **gab** *speech: other* | past · progressive | They |  |  |  |  |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **miss** | past | they | their bus stop |  |  |  |  | vn admire-31.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer stop=Stimulus |
| 3 | **stop** |  | their *= they* |  |  |  |  |  | nom stop «event transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Toad had the gift of the gab and talked his way out of trouble.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:gab:x6:1
# text = Toad had the gift of the gab and talked his way out of trouble.
1	Toad	Toad	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	gab	gab	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	talked	talk	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
10	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	_
12	out	out	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	of	of	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	trouble	trouble	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | Toad | the gift of the gab |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent gift=Patient |
| 2 | **talk** | past | Toad *not said here* | Toad's way |  | trouble |  |  | vn compel-59.1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent way=Patient |
| 3 | **gift** |  |  | the gab |  |  |  |  | nom gift «possession transitive»: of=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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