---
title: joke — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «joke» in the school dictionary: Something you say or do to make people laugh, often a short funny story. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# joke

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** you, people, test, I, joke, They · **What happens:** say, do, make, laugh, be, not take · **To what, where:** people, things, joke, me, everyone, one person · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Something you say or do to make people laugh, often a short funny story.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:m1:1
# text = Something you say or do to make people laugh, often a short funny story.
1	Something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	0	root	_	_
2	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	say	say	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	acl:relcl	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	do	do	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
7	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	advcl	_	_
8	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	_
9	laugh	laugh	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
11	often	often	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
13	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
14	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	story	story	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **do** | present | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **make** | to-infinitive | you *not said here* | people |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **laugh** | infinitive | people *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «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}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Something that is silly or not taken seriously.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:m2:1
# text = Something that is silly or not taken seriously.
1	Something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	0	root	_	_
2	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	4	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	silly	silly	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	acl:relcl	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
6	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	7	advmod	_	_
7	taken	take	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	conj	_	_
8	seriously	seriously	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | silly *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **take** | participle |  |  |  |  |  | seriously *property* | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"The test was a joke."

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:m2e:1
# text = "The test was a joke."
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	test	test	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
4	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** *in a quote* | past | the test | a joke |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
As a verb, to say things to be funny, not seriously.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:m3:1
# text = As a verb, to say things to be funny, not seriously.
1	As	as	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	verb	verb	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	say	say	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
9	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	cop	_	_
10	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
12	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	13	advmod	_	_
13	seriously	seriously	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | to-infinitive |  | things |  |  |  | as a verb; seriously *property* | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent thing=Topic |
| 2 | **is** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | funny *property* | tree rules |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"I'm only joking."

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:m3e:1
# text = "I'm only joking."
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	'm	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
4	only	only	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	joking	joke	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **joke** *speech: other* *in a quote* | present · progressive | I |  |  |  |  |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tell me a joke!

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x1:1
# text = Tell me a joke!
1	Tell	tell	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	me	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	1	iobj	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **tell** *speech: assert* | imperative | you *not said here* | a joke | me |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent i=Recipient joke=Topic |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
That joke was so funny.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x2:1
# text = That joke was so funny.
1	That	that	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	2	det	_	_
2	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | that joke |  |  |  |  | funny *property* | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I was only joking.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x3:1
# text = I was only joking.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	only	only	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	joking	joke	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **joke** *speech: other* | past · progressive | I |  |  |  |  |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
They played a joke on their teacher.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x4:1
# text = They played a joke on their teacher.
1	They	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	played	play	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	on	on	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	teacher	teacher	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 | **play** | past | They | a joke |  |  |  | on their teacher | vn use-105.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent joke=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A good joke makes everyone laugh, not just one person.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x5:1
# text = A good joke makes everyone laugh, not just one person.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	makes	make	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	everyone	everyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Tot	4	obj	_	_
6	laugh	laugh	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	11	advmod	_	_
9	just	just	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
10	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | a good joke | everyone |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **laugh** | infinitive | everyone *not said here* | one person |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He can't take a joke.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x6:1
# text = He can't take a joke.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	ca	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	take	take	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **take** | can | He | a joke |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent joke=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Getting lost in the snow is no joke.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x7:1
# text = Getting lost in the snow is no joke.
1	Getting	get	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	csubj	_	_
2	lost	lose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	xcomp	_	_
3	in	in	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	snow	snow	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	8	det	_	_
8	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer clause=Stimulus |
| 2 | **lose** | participle |  |  |  | the snow |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V PP.eventuality S\_ING»: agent=Agent in snow=Eventuality |
| 3 | **be** *speech: other* | present | Getting | no joke |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Why did the chicken cross the road? It's an old joke.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Why did the chicken cross the road?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x8:1
# text = Why did the chicken cross the road?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	5	advmod	_	_
2	did	do	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	chicken	chicken	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	cross	cross	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	road	road	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cross** | past · do-support | the chicken | the road |  |  |  |  | vn crane-40.3.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent road=Patient |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* It's an old joke.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:joke:x8:2
# text = It's an old joke.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	joke	joke	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 | chicken | a old joke |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- 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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