---
title: literal — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «literal» in the school dictionary: Taking words in their most basic, exact meaning, not as a joke or figure of speech. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# literal

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** words, literal meaning, meaning, you, it, literal translation · **What happens:** take, mean, figure, translate, use, not exaggerate · **To what, where:** words, most basic exact meaning, speech, leg, good luck, joke

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Taking words in their most basic, exact meaning, not as a joke or figure of speech.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:m1:1
# text = Taking words in their most basic, exact meaning, not as a joke or figure of speech.
1	Taking	take	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
2	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
3	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
4	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
5	most	most	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	9	amod	_	_
6	basic	basic	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
8	exact	exact	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
11	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	14	advmod	_	_
12	as	as	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
15	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	16	cc	_	_
16	figure	figure	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	conj	_	_
17	of	of	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
18	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | gerund |  | words |  | words's most basic exact meaning |  | as a joke or figure of speech | vn characterize-29.2 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent word=Theme as joke=Attribute |
| 2 | **mean** |  | words *= word* |  |  |  |  |  | nom meaning «communication transitive»: poss=agent |
| 3 | **figure** |  |  | speech |  |  |  |  | nom figure «communication transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- .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 -->
Translated word for word.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:m2:1
# text = Translated word for word.
1	Translated	translate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	amod	_	_
2	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	for	for	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **translate** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn turn-26.6.1 «NP V»: agent=Patient |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Used for real, not exaggerated.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:m3:1
# text = Used for real, not exaggerated.
1	Used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
2	for	for	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
3	real	real	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
6	exaggerated	exaggerate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | participle |  |  |  |  |  | for real | vn eat-39.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **exaggerate** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The literal meaning of "break a leg" is to snap your leg, but it means good luck.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x1:1
# text = The literal meaning of "break a leg" is to snap your leg, but it means good luck.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nsubj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	break	break	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	acl	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	leg	leg	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
11	to	to	PART	TO	_	12	mark	_	_
12	snap	snap	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
13	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	14	nmod:poss	_	_
14	leg	leg	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
16	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
17	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	nsubj	_	_
18	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	parataxis	_	_
19	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
20	luck	luck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **break** *in a quote* | infinitive | the literal meaning *not said here* | a leg |  |  |  |  | vn hurt-40.8.3-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer leg=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present | the literal meaning |  |  |  |  | snap *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **mean** | present | meaning | good luck |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent luck=Topic |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Don't be so literal — it was a joke!

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x2:1
# text = Don't be so literal — it was a joke!
1	Do	do	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
3	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	cop	_	_
4	so	so	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	advcl	_	_
6	—	-	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
8	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **do** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **is** | infinitive | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | literal *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **is a** | past | it | a joke |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A literal translation can sound strange in English.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x3:1
# text = A literal translation can sound strange in English.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	translation	translation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
4	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	sound	sound	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	strange	strange	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	xcomp	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | can | a literal translation |  |  | English |  | strange *property* | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in english=Location |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She took my words literally and really jumped in the lake.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x4:1
# text = She took my words literally and really jumped in the lake.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	took	take	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	literally	literally	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
7	really	really	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	jumped	jump	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	lake	lake	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | past | She | my words |  |  |  | literally *property* | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent word=Theme |
| 2 | **jump** | past | She *not said here* |  |  | the lake |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in lake=Trajectory |
| 3 | **word** |  | my |  |  |  |  |  | nom word «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In a literal sense, "breakfast" means breaking a fast.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x5:1
# text = In a literal sense, "breakfast" means breaking a fast.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	sense	sense	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
6	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	breakfast	breakfast	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	7	punct	_	_
9	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
10	breaking	break	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	9	xcomp	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	fast	fast	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | breakfast |  |  | a literal sense |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **break** *not said to happen* | gerund | breakfast *not said here* | a fast |  |  |  |  | vn hurt-40.8.3-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer fast=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The literal truth is that we lost five to nil.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x6:1
# text = The literal truth is that we lost five to nil.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	truth	truth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
5	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
6	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	lost	lose	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	five	five	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	7	obj	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
10	nil	nil	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | the literal truth |  |  |  |  | lose *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **nil** | to-infinitive | the literal truth *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The stories are not literal, or word by word translations, but have been altered in many ways to make them suitable for children.

<!-- fold The tree, 23 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:literal:x7:1
# text = The stories are not literal, or word by word translations, but have been altered in many ways to make them suitable for children.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	stories	story	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
3	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	literal	literal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	_
9	by	by	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	compound	_	_
11	translations	translation	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
13	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	16	cc	_	_
14	have	have	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	16	aux	_	_
15	been	be	AUX	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	16	aux:pass	_	_
16	altered	alter	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	parataxis	_	_
17	in	in	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
18	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	19	amod	_	_
19	ways	way	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	16	obl	_	_
20	to	to	PART	TO	_	21	mark	_	_
21	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	16	advcl	_	_
22	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	21	obj	_	_
23	suitable	suitable	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	21	xcomp	_	_
24	for	for	ADP	IN	_	25	case	_	_
25	children	child	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	23	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is** | present | the stories |  |  |  |  | literal *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **alter** | present · perfect · passive |  |  |  | many ways |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V» |
| 3 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | stories *= story* |  |  |  | suitable *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset they=Product |
| 4 | **word** |  | word translations |  |  |  |  |  | nom word «communication transitive»: by=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 -->

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