---
title: knack — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «knack» in the school dictionary: A special skill or clever way of doing something, often one that is hard to explain. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# knack

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** clever way, knack, She, Opening, you, dog · **What happens:** do, be, explain, get, have, solve · **To what, where:** something, trouble, knack, jar, unicycle, mud · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«knack» in the school dictionary: its 2 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: [knack in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/knack.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A special skill or clever way of doing something, often one that is hard to explain.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:m1:1
# text = A special skill or clever way of doing something, often one that is hard to explain.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	special	special	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	skill	skill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
5	clever	clever	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
7	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
8	doing	do	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	acl	_	_
9	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	often	often	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
12	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	9	appos	_	_
13	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	15	nsubj	_	_
14	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	15	cop	_	_
15	hard	hard	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	acl:relcl	_	_
16	to	to	PART	TO	_	17	mark	_	_
17	explain	explain	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	15	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **do** | gerund | clever way *not said here* | something |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Eventuality |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | hard *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **explain** *speech: assert* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1 «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 -->
A habit or tendency to do something, often by accident, like «a knack for getting into trouble».

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:m2:1
# text = A habit or tendency to do something, often by accident, like «a knack for getting into trouble».
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	habit	habit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	tendency	tendency	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	acl	_	_
7	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
9	often	often	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
10	by	by	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	accident	accident	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
13	like	like	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
14	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	appos	_	_
17	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	18	mark	_	_
18	getting	get	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	16	acl	_	_
19	into	into	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
20	trouble	trouble	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **do** | to-infinitive |  | something |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Eventuality |
| 2 | **get** *in a quote* | gerund | a knack *not said here* |  |  | trouble |  |  | vn escape-51.1 «NP V PP.destination»: agent=Theme into trouble=Destination |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She has a knack for solving puzzles.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x1:1
# text = She has a knack for solving puzzles.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	solving	solve	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	7	amod	_	_
7	puzzles	puzzle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | She | a knack |  |  |  | for solving puzzles | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent knack=Patient |
| 2 | **solve** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Opening this jar is easy once you get the knack.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x2:1
# text = Opening this jar is easy once you get the knack.
1	Opening	open	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	csubj	_	_
2	this	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	3	det	_	_
3	jar	jar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	easy	easy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
6	once	once	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
7	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
8	get	get	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **open** | gerund |  | this jar |  |  |  |  | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location jar=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present | Opening |  |  |  |  | easy *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **get** | present | you | the knack |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer knack=Stimulus |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There's a knack to riding a unicycle.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x3:1
# text = There's a knack to riding a unicycle.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	riding	ride	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	unicycle	unicycle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **be** | present | a knack |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **ride** | gerund | a knack *not said here* | a unicycle |  |  |  |  | vn nonvehicle-51.4.2 «NP V NP.location»: agent=Agent unicycle=Location |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My dog has a knack for finding mud.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x4:1
# text = My dog has a knack for finding mud.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
7	finding	find	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	acl	_	_
8	mud	mud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | My dog | a knack |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent knack=Patient |
| 2 | **find** | gerund | a knack *not said here* | mud |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mud=Topic |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tom has a knack for making people laugh.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x5:1
# text = Tom has a knack for making people laugh.
1	Tom	Tom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	making	make	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nsubj	_	_
8	laugh	laugh	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | Tom | a knack |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent knack=Patient |
| 2 | **make** | gerund | a knack *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **laugh** | infinitive | people |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I finally got the knack of long division.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x6:1
# text = I finally got the knack of long division.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	finally	finally	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	got	get	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	division	division	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **get** | past | I | the knack of long division |  |  |  | finally *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer knack=Stimulus |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Grandma has a knack with plants; everything she grows is huge.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x7:1
# text = Grandma has a knack with plants; everything she grows is huge.
1	Grandma	grandma	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	plants	plant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
8	everything	everything	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Tot	12	nsubj	_	_
9	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	grows	grow	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	acl:relcl	_	_
11	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
12	huge	huge	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | Grandma | a knack |  |  |  | with plants | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent knack=Patient |
| 2 | **grow** | present | Grandma |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **is** | present | everything |  |  |  |  | huge *property* | tree rules |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"My dear friend," said the Lion, "how did you get the knack of it so well?" The Fox replied, "Me?

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* "My dear friend," said the Lion, "how did you get the knack of it so well?"

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x8:1
# text = "My dear friend," said the Lion, "how did you get the knack of it so well?"
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
3	dear	dear	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	friend	friend	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
7	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	Lion	Lion	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
11	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	15	advmod	_	_
13	did	do	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	15	aux	_	_
14	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	15	nsubj	_	_
15	get	get	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	ccomp	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	knack	knack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obj	_	_
18	of	of	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
19	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	17	nmod	_	_
20	so	so	ADV	RB	_	21	advmod	_	_
21	well	well	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	15	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	15	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: ask* | past | My dear friend |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **get** *in a quote* | past · do-support | you | the knack of Lion |  |  |  | well *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer knack=Stimulus |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* The Fox replied, "Me?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:knack:x8:2
# text = The Fox replied, "Me?
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	Fox	fox	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	replied	reply	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	Me	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **reply** *speech: assert* | past | the Fox | Me |  |  |  |  | vn respond-113 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- 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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