---
title: kwa — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «kwa» in the school dictionary: Kwa is a large family of languages spoken in West Africa, in countries such as Ghana, Togo, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria; Akan (Twi), Ewe and Fon are Kwa languages. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# kwa

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Kwa, countries, common little word, duck, Twi, Millions · **What happens:** be, speak, mean, not be, call, belong · **To what, where:** large family, languages, West Africa, Kwa languages, common little word, part · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«kwa» in the school dictionary: its 3 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: [kwa in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/kwa.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Kwa is a large family of languages spoken in West Africa, in countries such as Ghana, Togo, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria; Akan (Twi), Ewe and Fon are Kwa languages.

<!-- fold The tree, 30 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:m1:1
# text = Kwa is a large family of languages spoken in West Africa, in countries such as Ghana, Togo, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria; Akan (Twi), Ewe and Fon are Kwa languages.
1	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	family	family	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	languages	language	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	_
8	spoken	speak	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	acl	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	West	West	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	Africa	Africa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
13	in	in	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	countries	country	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	38	nsubj	_	_
15	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=ADP	17	case	_	_
16	as	as	ADP	IN	_	15	fixed	_	_
17	Ghana	Ghana	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	19	punct	_	_
19	Togo	Togo	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	21	punct	_	_
21	Benin	Benin	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	24	punct	_	_
23	Côte	Côte	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	24	compound	_	_
24	d'Ivoire	d'Ivoire	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	_
25	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	26	cc	_	_
26	Nigeria	Nigeria	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	24	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	28	punct	_	_
28	Akan	Akan	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	_
29	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	30	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
30	Twi	Twi	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	28	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	30	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
32	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	33	punct	_	_
33	Ewe	Ewe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	_
34	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	35	cc	_	_
35	Fon	Fon	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	_
36	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	38	cop	_	_
37	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	38	compound	_	_
38	languages	language	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
39	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Kwa | a large family |  |  |  | of languages | tree rules |
| 2 | **speak** *speech: other* | participle |  | languages *not said here* |  | West Africa |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is a** | present | countries such Ghana and Togo and Benin and Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria and Akan and Ewe and Fon | Kwa languages |  |  |  |  | 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}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Kwa» is a common little word meaning «for», «to», «with» or «by», as in «kwa heri» (goodbye).

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:m2:1
# text = «Kwa» is a common little word meaning «for», «to», «with» or «by», as in «kwa heri» (goodbye).
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
6	common	common	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
7	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	meaning	mean	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	acl	_	_
10	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	19	punct	_	_
18	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	19	punct	_	_
21	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	23	cc	_	_
22	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	by	by	ADP	IN	_	19	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
25	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	30	punct	_	_
26	as	as	ADP	IN	_	30	case	_	_
27	in	in	ADP	IN	_	30	case	_	_
28	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	30	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	kwa	kwa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	30	compound	_	_
30	heri	heri	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	30	punct	_	_
32	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	33	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
33	goodbye	goodbye	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	30	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
34	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	33	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
35	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Kwa | a common little word and kwa heri |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | gerund | a common little word and kwa heri *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
As a fragment, «kwa» may be part of a longer word or a sound effect, like a duck's or frog's call; it is not an English word.

<!-- fold The tree, 29 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:m3:1
# text = As a fragment, «kwa» may be part of a longer word or a sound effect, like a duck's or frog's call; it is not an English word.
1	As	as	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	fragment	fragment	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	kwa	kwa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	may	may	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	10	aux	_	_
9	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	cop	_	_
10	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
13	longer	long	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	14	amod	_	_
14	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod	_	_
15	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	compound	_	_
18	effect	effect	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	27	punct	_	_
20	like	like	ADP	IN	_	27	case	_	_
21	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
22	duck	duck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	27	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	's	's	PART	POS	_	22	case	_	_
24	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	25	cc	_	_
25	frog	frog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	27	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	's	's	PART	POS	_	25	case	_	_
27	call	call	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	34	punct	_	_
29	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	34	nsubj	_	_
30	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	34	cop	_	_
31	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	34	advmod	_	_
32	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	34	det	_	_
33	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	34	amod	_	_
34	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
35	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | may | kwa | part and a English word |  |  |  | as a fragment; of a longer word or a sound effect | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **is a** | present | kwa | a English word |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **call** |  | a duck |  |  |  |  |  | nom call «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Twi and Ewe belong to the Kwa languages of West Africa.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x1:1
# text = Twi and Ewe belong to the Kwa languages of West Africa.
1	Twi	Twi	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	3	cc	_	_
3	Ewe	Ewe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	conj	_	_
4	belong	belong	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	languages	language	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	West	West	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	Africa	Africa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **belong** | present | Twi and Ewe |  |  |  |  | to the Kwa languages of West Africa | vn attend-107.4-2 «NP V PP»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Millions of people in Ghana speak a Kwa language.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x2:1
# text = Millions of people in Ghana speak a Kwa language.
1	Millions	million	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
2	of	of	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
3	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	nmod	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	Ghana	Ghana	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
6	speak	speak	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **speak** *speech: other* | present | Millions of people in Ghana | a Kwa language |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Kwa heri!» means «Goodbye!» in Swahili.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x3:1
# text = «Kwa heri!» means «Goodbye!» in Swahili.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	heri	heri	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	flat	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
6	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	Goodbye	goodbye	INTJ	UH	_	6	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	Swahili	Swahili	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Kwa |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Linguists group Ewe and Fon in the Kwa family.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x4:1
# text = Linguists group Ewe and Fon in the Kwa family.
1	Linguists	linguist	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	compound	_	_
2	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod:desc	_	_
3	Ewe	Ewe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	Fon	Fon	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	family	family	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The comic showed a frog going «kwa kwa».

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x5:1
# text = The comic showed a frog going «kwa kwa».
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	comic	comic	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	showed	show	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	frog	frog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	going	go	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	acl	_	_
7	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	kwa	kwa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	kwa	kwa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **show** | past | the comic |  | a frog |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent frog=Recipient |
| 2 | **go** | gerund | a frog *not said here* | kwa kwa |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Kwa is not an English word; it is a name for a language group.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:kwa:x6:1
# text = Kwa is not an English word; it is a name for a language group.
1	Kwa	Kwa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	11	nsubj	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	name	name	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	_
12	for	for	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
14	language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	compound	_	_
15	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is a** | present | Kwa | a English word |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is a** | present | word | a name |  |  |  | for a language group | 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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