---
title: grunt — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «grunt» in the school dictionary: To grunt is to make a short low sound in your throat, like a pig. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/G/grunt/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/) / [school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/) / [G](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/G/) / grunt

# grunt

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** grunt, People, worker, Dad, brother, I · **What happens:** grunt, be, lift, answer, rank, do · **To what, where:** sound, something, ranking soldier, pig, mud, sofa

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To grunt is to make a short low sound in your throat, like a pig.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:m1:1
# text = To grunt is to make a short low sound in your throat, like a pig.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	grunt	grunt	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	csubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
7	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
8	low	low	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
10	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	12	nmod:poss	_	_
12	throat	throat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
14	like	like	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	pig	pig	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | make *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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 grunt is that sound.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:m2:1
# text = A grunt is that sound.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	grunt	grunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	that	that	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	5	det	_	_
5	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

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

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
People grunt when lifting something heavy, or to answer without words when they are tired or grumpy.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:m3:1
# text = People grunt when lifting something heavy, or to answer without words when they are tired or grumpy.
1	People	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	grunt	grunt	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	4	advmod	_	_
4	lifting	lift	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	advcl	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	_
6	heavy	heavy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
10	answer	answer	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	conj	_	_
11	without	without	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	obl	_	_
13	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	16	mark	_	_
14	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	16	nsubj	_	_
15	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	16	cop	_	_
16	tired	tired	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	advcl	_	_
17	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	grumpy	grumpy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | present | People |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **lift** | gerund | People *not said here* | something |  |  |  |  | vn put\_direction-9.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Theme |
| 3 | **answer** *speech: assert* | to-infinitive | People *not said here* |  |  |  |  | without words | vn reciprocate-112-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **is** | present | People |  |  |  |  | tired *property* | tree rules |
| 5 | **be** |  | People *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A grunt is a low-ranking soldier or worker who does hard, boring jobs.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:m4:1
# text = A grunt is a low-ranking soldier or worker who does hard, boring jobs.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	grunt	grunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
5	low	low	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	ranking	rank	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	amod	_	_
8	soldier	soldier	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	worker	worker	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	_
11	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	12	nsubj	_	_
12	does	do	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	acl:relcl	_	_
13	hard	hard	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	12	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
15	boring	boring	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	_
16	jobs	job	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **rank** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn masquerade-29.6 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is a** | present | a grunt | a ranking soldier or worker |  |  |  | boring jobs *obl* | tree rules |
| 3 | **do** | present | worker |  |  |  |  | hard *property* | vn act-114-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The pig grunted in the mud.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x1:1
# text = The pig grunted in the mud.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pig	pig	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	grunted	grunt	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	mud	mud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | participle |  | the pig *not said here* |  | the mud |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad grunted as he lifted the sofa.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x2:1
# text = Dad grunted as he lifted the sofa.
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	grunted	grunt	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
4	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
5	lifted	lift	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	advcl	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	sofa	sofa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | past | Dad |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **lift** | past | Dad | the sofa |  |  |  |  | vn put\_direction-9.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent sofa=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My brother just grunts when I ask about school.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x3:1
# text = My brother just grunts when I ask about school.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	just	just	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	grunts	grunt	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
6	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	ask	ask	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
8	about	about	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | present | My brother |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **ask** *speech: ask* | present | I |  |  |  |  | about school | vn inquire-37.1.2 «NP V PP.topic whether S»: agent=Agent about school=Topic |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The tennis player grunted with every shot.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x4:1
# text = The tennis player grunted with every shot.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	tennis	tennis	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	player	player	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	grunted	grunt	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	acl	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	7	det	_	_
7	shot	shot	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | participle |  | the tennis player *not said here* |  |  |  | with every shot | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He gave a grunt of agreement.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x5:1
# text = He gave a grunt of agreement.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	gave	give	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	grunt	grunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	agreement	agreement	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | past | He | a grunt of agreement |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent grunt=Theme |
| 2 | **grunt** |  | agreement |  |  |  |  |  | nom grunt «event intransitive»: of=agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I got stuck with all the grunt work.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x6:1
# text = I got stuck with all the grunt work.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	got	get	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	stuck	stuck	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	xcomp	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
5	all	all	DET	PDT	PronType=Tot	8	det:predet	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	grunt	grunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	work	work	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | past | I |  |  |  |  | stuck *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
But the ugly old Fairy only grunted and made no answer.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:grunt:x7:1
# text = But the ugly old Fairy only grunted and made no answer.
1	But	but	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
3	ugly	ugly	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
4	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	Fairy	fairy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
6	only	only	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	grunted	grunt	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	conj	_	_
10	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	11	det	_	_
11	answer	answer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grunt** | past | the ugly old Fairy |  |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **make** | past | the ugly old Fairy *not said here* | no answer |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset answer=Product |

<!-- 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 -->
- ← previous: [grumpy](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/G/grumpy/)
- next →: [gryphon](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/G/gryphon/)
- ↑ back to [G in school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/G/)