---
title: justification — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «justification» in the school dictionary: A justification is a good reason that shows something is right or fair. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# justification

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** justification, good reason, something, act, you, answer · **What happens:** be, show, explain, know, line up, write down · **To what, where:** good reason, act, explanation, text, answer, little brother · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A justification is a good reason that shows something is right or fair.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:m1:1
# text = A justification is a good reason that shows something is right or fair.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	reason	reason	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
8	shows	show	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	acl:relcl	_	_
9	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	11	nsubj	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
11	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	ccomp	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	fair	fair	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a justification | a good reason |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **show** | present | a good reason |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** | present | something |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |
| 4 | **be** |  | something *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | 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 -->
Justification is the act of explaining why something was right.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:m2:1
# text = Justification is the act of explaining why something was right.
1	Justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	act	act	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	explaining	explain	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	10	advmod	_	_
8	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	10	nsubj	_	_
9	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
10	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Justification | the act |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **explain** *speech: assert* | gerund | the act *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** | past | something |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A justification is the explanation of how you know an answer is correct.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:m3:1
# text = A justification is the explanation of how you know an answer is correct.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	explanation	explanation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
7	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	9	advmod	_	_
8	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
9	know	know	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
10	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	answer	answer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	nsubj	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	cop	_	_
13	correct	correct	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a justification | the explanation |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **know** | present | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer |
| 3 | **is** | present | a answer |  |  |  |  | correct *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Justification is lining up text so both edges of a column are straight.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:m4:1
# text = Justification is lining up text so both edges of a column are straight.
1	Justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	lining	line	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
4	up	up	ADP	RP	_	3	compound:prt	_	_
5	text	text	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	so	so	ADV	RB	_	13	advmod	_	_
7	both	both	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	8	det	_	_
8	edges	edge	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	nsubj	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	column	column	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	_
12	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	cop	_	_
13	straight	straight	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **line up** | present · progressive | Justification | text |  |  |  |  | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme text=Destination |
| 2 | **is** | present | both edges of a column |  |  |  |  | straight *property* | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There is no justification for bullying.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x1:1
# text = There is no justification for bullying.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	_
2	is	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	det	_	_
4	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	bullying	bullying	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 | **be** | present | no justification for bullying |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Write down your answer and a justification.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x2:1
# text = Write down your answer and a justification.
1	Write	write	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	down	down	ADP	RP	_	1	compound:prt	_	_
3	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	answer	answer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **write down** | imperative | you *not said here* | your answer and a justification |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent answer=Theme |
| 2 | **answer** |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom answer «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
His justification was that he was protecting his little brother.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x3:1
# text = His justification was that he was protecting his little brother.
1	His	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
4	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
5	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
6	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	protecting	protect	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
8	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
9	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **protect** | past · progressive | His justification |  | justification's little brother |  |  |  | vn defend-72.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent brother=Beneficiary |
| 2 | **justify** |  | His *= he* |  |  |  |  |  | nom justification «cognition transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The teacher asked for a justification of each step.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x4:1
# text = The teacher asked for a justification of each step.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	teacher	teacher	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	asked	ask	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	each	each	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	9	det	_	_
9	step	step	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ask** *speech: ask* | past | the teacher |  |  |  |  | for a justification of each step | vn inquire-37.1.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **justify** |  |  | each step |  |  |  |  | nom justification «cognition transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Is there any justification for lying to a friend?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x5:1
# text = Is there any justification for lying to a friend?
1	Is	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	there	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	1	expl	_	_
3	any	any	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	4	det	_	_
4	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nsubj	_	_
5	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	lying	lie	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	to	to	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	friend	friend	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **be** | present | any justification |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **lie** | gerund | any justification *not said here* |  |  |  |  | to a friend | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In justification, she said the bus was late.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x6:1
# text = In justification, she said the bus was late.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
5	said	say	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	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
8	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
9	late	late	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | she |  |  | justification |  |  | vn pronounce-29.3.1 «NP V NP PP.manner»: agent=Agent in justification=Manner |
| 2 | **is** | past | the bus |  |  |  |  | late *property* | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Use full justification so both sides of the text are straight.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:justification:x7:1
# text = Use full justification so both sides of the text are straight.
1	Use	use	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	full	full	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	justification	justification	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
5	both	both	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	6	det	_	_
6	sides	side	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	nsubj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	text	text	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	_
10	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
11	straight	straight	ADV	RB	_	1	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | imperative | you *not said here* | full justification |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent justification=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present | both sides of the text |  |  |  |  | straight *property* | 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 -->

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