---
title: germ — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «germ» in the school dictionary: A very tiny living thing, too small to see, that can make people or animals ill. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# germ

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** that, seed, you, Germs, Soap, it · **What happens:** see, make, grow, begin, wash, get · **To what, where:** people, something, plant, hands, elbow, you

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A very tiny living thing, too small to see, that can make people or animals ill.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:m1:1
# text = A very tiny living thing, too small to see, that can make people or animals ill.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
2	very	very	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	tiny	tiny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
4	living	living	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	thing	thing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	too	too	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
10	see	see	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
12	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	14	nsubj	_	_
13	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	14	aux	_	_
14	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	parataxis	_	_
15	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obj	_	_
16	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
17	animals	animal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	conj	_	_
18	ill	ill	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **see** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **make** | can | that | people or animals |  |  |  | ill *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset people=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 -->
The very beginning of something that grows.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:m2:1
# text = The very beginning of something that grows.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	very	very	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	beginning	beginning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	3	nmod	_	_
6	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	7	nsubj	_	_
7	grows	grow	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grow** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **begin** |  |  | something |  |  |  |  | nom beginning «event transitive»: of=patient |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"the germ of an idea".

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:m2e:1
# text = "the germ of an idea".
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	germ	germ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	idea	idea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The part of a seed that grows into a plant (wheat germ).

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:m3:1
# text = The part of a seed that grows into a plant (wheat germ).
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	seed	seed	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	7	nsubj	_	_
7	grows	grow	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
8	into	into	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	plant	plant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
11	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	wheat	wheat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	compound	_	_
13	germ	germ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grow** | present | a seed |  |  |  |  | into a plant *result* | vn become-109.1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient into plant=Result |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wash your hands to get rid of germs.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x1:1
# text = Wash your hands to get rid of germs.
1	Wash	wash	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	hands	hand	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	get	get	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	1	advcl	_	_
6	rid	rid	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	xcomp	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **wash** | imperative | you *not said here* | your hands |  |  |  |  | vn floss-41.2.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent hand=Patient |
| 2 | **get** | to-infinitive | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | rid *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Germs are too small to see.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x2:1
# text = Germs are too small to see.
1	Germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	too	too	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	see	see	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Germs |  |  |  |  | small *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **see** | to-infinitive | Germs *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Sneeze into your elbow so germs don't spread.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x3:1
# text = Sneeze into your elbow so germs don't spread.
1	Sneeze	sneeze	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	into	into	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
3	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	elbow	elbow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
5	so	so	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
6	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nsubj	_	_
7	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	9	advmod	_	_
9	spread	spread	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	1	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sneeze** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  | your elbow |  |  | vn hiccup-40.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **spread** | present · do-support | germs |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Some germs make you sick.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x4:1
# text = Some germs make you sick.
1	Some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	2	det	_	_
2	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	make	make	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	3	obj	_	_
5	sick	sick	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | some germs | you |  |  |  | sick *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset you=Product |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Soap kills many germs.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x5:1
# text = Soap kills many germs.
1	Soap	soap	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	kills	kill	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **kill** | present | Soap | many germs |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent germ=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Germs can live on door handles.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x6:1
# text = Germs can live on door handles.
1	Germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	live	live	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	door	door	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	handles	handle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | can | Germs |  |  | door handles |  |  | vn exist-47.1-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme on handle=Location |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cook meat well to kill germs.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x7:1
# text = Cook meat well to kill germs.
1	Cook	cook	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	meat	meat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
3	well	well	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	1	advmod	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	kill	kill	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	1	advcl	_	_
6	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cook** | imperative | you *not said here* | meat |  |  |  | well *property* | vn cooking-45.3 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent meat=Patient |
| 2 | **kill** | to-infinitive | you *not said here* | germs |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent germ=Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
That was the germ of a great idea.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x8:1
# text = That was the germ of a great idea.
1	That	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	4	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	germ	germ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	great	great	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	idea	idea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | That | the germ |  |  |  | of a great idea | tree rules |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"Why, it's a mass of scarlet fever germs!-Burn it at once.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:germ:x9:1
# text = "Why, it's a mass of scarlet fever germs!-Burn it at once.
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
4	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	mass	mass	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	appos	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	scarlet	scarlet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	fever	fever	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	-	-	PUNCT	NFP	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	Burn	burn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	acl:relcl	_	_
15	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	14	obj	_	_
16	at	at	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
17	once	once	ADV	RB	NumForm=Word|NumType=Mult	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** *in a quote* | present | it | a mass |  |  |  | of fever germs | tree rules |
| 2 | **burn** *in a quote* | infinitive | fever germs *not said here* | mass |  |  |  |  | vn light\_emission-43.1 «NP V NP.theme»: agent=Agent it=Theme |

<!-- 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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