---
title: illusion — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «illusion» in the school dictionary: Something that seems real or true but is not: a trick of the eyes or the mind. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# illusion

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** picture, lines, He, two lines, it, illusion · **What happens:** seem, not be, trick, look, be, cancel · **To what, where:** trick, eyes, different lengths, illusion, optical illusion, same length

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Something that seems real or true but is not: a trick of the eyes or the mind.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:m1:1
# text = Something that seems real or true but is not: a trick of the eyes or the mind.
1	Something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	0	root	_	_
2	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	3	nsubj	_	_
3	seems	seem	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	acl:relcl	_	_
4	real	real	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	xcomp	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	true	true	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	conj	_	_
7	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
9	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	12	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	trick	trick	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
13	of	of	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	eyes	eye	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	nmod	_	_
16	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
17	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
18	mind	mind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **seem** | present |  |  |  |  |  | real *property* | vn seem-109-1-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **not** **is a** | present |  | a trick |  |  |  | of the eyes or the mind | 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 -->
An optical illusion: a picture that tricks your eyes, like lines that look different lengths but are the same.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:m2:1
# text = An optical illusion: a picture that tricks your eyes, like lines that look different lengths but are the same.
1	An	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	optical	optical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	6	punct	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	picture	picture	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	appos	_	_
7	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
8	tricks	trick	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	acl:relcl	_	_
9	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	eyes	eye	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
12	like	like	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
13	lines	line	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	_
14	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	15	nsubj	_	_
15	look	look	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	acl:relcl	_	_
16	different	different	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	lengths	length	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obj	_	_
18	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	21	cc	_	_
19	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	21	cop	_	_
20	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	21	det	_	_
21	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **trick** | present | a picture | your eyes |  |  |  | like lines | vn trick-59.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent eye=Patient |
| 2 | **look** | present | lines | different lengths |  |  |  |  | vn seem-109-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme length=Attribute |
| 3 | **is** | present | lines *not said here* |  |  |  |  | same *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A false idea or belief: «He was under the illusion that school was cancelled».

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:m3:1
# text = A false idea or belief: «He was under the illusion that school was cancelled».
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	false	false	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	idea	idea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	belief	belief	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
7	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
9	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
10	under	under	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
13	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	16	nsubj:pass	_	_
14	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	nsubj:pass	_	_
15	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	16	aux:pass	_	_
16	cancelled	cancel	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	12	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** *in a quote* | past | He |  |  | the illusion |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **cancel** *in a quote* | past · passive |  | the illusion |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A magic trick on a stage.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:m4:1
# text = A magic trick on a stage.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	magic	magic	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	trick	trick	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	stage	stage	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The two lines look different, but it's an optical illusion — they're the same length.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x1:1
# text = The two lines look different, but it's an optical illusion — they're the same length.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
3	lines	line	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	look	look	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	different	different	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
7	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
10	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	optical	optical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
13	—	-	PUNCT	:	_	18	punct	_	_
14	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	're	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	cop	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	length	length	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **look** | present | the two lines |  |  |  |  | different *property* | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Stimulus |
| 2 | **is a** | present | it | a optical illusion |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **is a** | present | lines *= line* | the same length |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The magician's illusion made the rabbit vanish.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x2:1
# text = The magician's illusion made the rabbit vanish.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	magician	magician	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	rabbit	rabbit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
8	vanish	vanish	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | the magician's illusion |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **vanish** | infinitive | the rabbit |  |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A mirage is an illusion of water in the hot desert.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x3:1
# text = A mirage is an illusion of water in the hot desert.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	mirage	mirage	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	hot	hot	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	desert	desert	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a mirage | a illusion |  | the hot desert |  | of water | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He was under the illusion that he would win easily.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x4:1
# text = He was under the illusion that he would win easily.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	under	under	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
7	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
8	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
9	win	win	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	acl	_	_
10	easily	easily	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | He |  |  | the illusion |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **win** | would | he | the illusion *not said here* |  |  |  | easily *property* | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent illusion=Eventuality |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The mirror gives the illusion of a bigger room.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x5:1
# text = The mirror gives the illusion of a bigger room.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	mirror	mirror	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	gives	give	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	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	bigger	big	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	9	amod	_	_
9	room	room	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | present | the mirror | the illusion of a bigger room |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent illusion=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Measure the lines with a ruler to beat the illusion.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:illusion:x6:1
# text = Measure the lines with a ruler to beat the illusion.
1	Measure	measure	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	lines	line	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	ruler	ruler	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	beat	beat	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	1	advcl	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	illusion	illusion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **measure** | imperative | you *not said here* | the lines |  |  |  | with a ruler | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme line=Value |
| 2 | **beat** | to-infinitive | you *not said here* | the illusion |  |  |  |  | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location illusion=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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