---
title: laughing — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «laughing» in the school dictionary: Laughing means making happy sounds with your voice and face when something is funny. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# laughing

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** something, Laughing, children, We, you, it · **What happens:** laugh, mean, make, be, share, not stop · **To what, where:** happy sounds, someone, fun, clown, joke, sausage · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«laughing» in the school dictionary: its 3 meanings for a pupil and its 9 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: [laughing in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/laughing.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Laughing means making happy sounds with your voice and face when something is funny.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:m1:1
# text = Laughing means making happy sounds with your voice and face when something is funny.
1	Laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	making	make	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	xcomp	_	_
4	happy	happy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	sounds	sound	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	voice	voice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	face	face	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	_
11	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	14	mark	_	_
12	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	14	nsubj	_	_
13	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	cop	_	_
14	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **make** *not said to happen* | gerund |  | happy sounds |  |  |  | with your voice and face | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset sound=Product |
| 4 | **is** *not said to happen* | present | something |  |  |  |  | funny *property* | 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 -->
Laughing at someone means making fun of them unkindly.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:m2:1
# text = Laughing at someone means making fun of them unkindly.
1	Laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	csubj	_	_
2	at	at	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
3	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	1	obl	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	making	make	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	xcomp	_	_
6	fun	fun	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nmod	_	_
9	unkindly	unkindly	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | gerund |  |  |  | someone |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **mean** | present | Laughing |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **make** *not said to happen* | gerund | Laughing *not said here* | fun of them |  |  |  | unkindly *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset fun=Product |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Laughing with someone means sharing the fun together.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:m3:1
# text = Laughing with someone means sharing the fun together.
1	Laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	csubj	_	_
2	with	with	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
3	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	1	obl	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	sharing	share	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	xcomp	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	fun	fun	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	together	together	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  | with someone | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **mean** | present | Laughing |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **share** *not said to happen* | gerund | Laughing *not said here* | the fun |  |  |  | together *property* | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The children were laughing at the clown.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x1:1
# text = The children were laughing at the clown.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	children	child	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	clown	clown	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | past · progressive | the children |  |  | the clown |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We couldn't stop laughing at the joke.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x2:1
# text = We couldn't stop laughing at the joke.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	could	could	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	stop	stop	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	xcomp	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **stop** | could | We |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **laugh** | gerund | We *not said here* |  |  | the joke |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stop laughing at him; it isn't kind.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x3:1
# text = Stop laughing at him; it isn't kind.
1	Stop	stop	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	1	xcomp	_	_
3	at	at	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	him	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	9	punct	_	_
6	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
7	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	9	advmod	_	_
9	kind	kind	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stop** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **laugh** | gerund | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | at him *= he* | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **not** **is** | present | it |  |  |  |  | kind *property* | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She was laughing so hard she cried.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x4:1
# text = She was laughing so hard she cried.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	hard	hard	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	3	advmod	_	_
6	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	cried	cry	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | past · progressive | She |  |  |  |  | hard *property* | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **cry** *speech: express* | past | she |  |  |  |  |  | vn manner\_speaking-37.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He burst out laughing when the dog stole the sausage.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x5:1
# text = He burst out laughing when the dog stole the sausage.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	burst	burst	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	out	out	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	advcl	_	_
5	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	8	advmod	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
8	stole	steal	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	sausage	sausage	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **burst out** | past | He |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **laugh** | gerund | He *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **steal** | past | the dog | the sausage |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location sausage=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Being lost is no laughing matter.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x6:1
# text = Being lost is no laughing matter.
1	Being	be	AUX	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	aux:pass	_	_
2	lost	lose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	csubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	6	det	_	_
5	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	amod	_	_
6	matter	matter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **lose** | gerund · passive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V» |
| 2 | **laugh** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is a** | present |  | no laughing matter |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The kookaburra sounds like it's laughing.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x7:1
# text = The kookaburra sounds like it's laughing.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	kookaburra	kookaburra	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	like	like	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
5	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present | the kookaburra |  |  |  |  |  | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Stimulus |
| 2 | **laugh** | present · progressive | kookaburra |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We were laughing with each other all evening.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x8:1
# text = We were laughing with each other all evening.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
5	each	each	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	8	det	_	_
6	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
7	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	8	det	_	_
8	evening	evening	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | past · progressive | We |  |  |  | evening |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
“I am laughing at your lies.”

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:laughing:x9:1
# text = “I am laughing at your lies.”
1	“	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
3	am	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	lies	lie	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	”	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** *in a quote* | present · progressive | I |  |  | your lies |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **lie** *in a quote* |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom lie «communication intransitive»: poss=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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