---
title: mesa — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «mesa» in the school dictionary: A hill or mountain with steep sides and a large, flat top, found in dry places like the south-west USA and parts of Australia. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# mesa

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Mesa, We, Erosion, butte, cowboy · **What happens:** find, mean, name, be, see, turn · **To what, where:** hill, dry places, table, red mesas, desert, plateau · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A hill or mountain with steep sides and a large, flat top, found in dry places like the south-west USA and parts of Australia.

<!-- fold The tree, 25 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:m1:1
# text = A hill or mountain with steep sides and a large, flat top, found in dry places like the south-west USA and parts of Australia.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	hill	hill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	mountain	mountain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	steep	steep	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	sides	side	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
10	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
12	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	top	top	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
15	found	find	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
16	in	in	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
17	dry	dry	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	places	place	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obl	_	_
19	like	like	ADP	IN	_	24	case	_	_
20	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	24	det	_	_
21	south	south	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	21	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	west	west	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	24	amod	_	_
24	USA	USA	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	18	nmod	_	_
25	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	26	cc	_	_
26	parts	part	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	24	conj	_	_
27	of	of	ADP	IN	_	28	case	_	_
28	Australia	Australia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	26	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **find** | participle |  | a hill or mountain with steep sides and a large flat top *not said here* |  | dry places like the west USA and parts of Australia |  |  | vn declare-29.4-1-1 «NP V what S\_INF»: 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}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Mesa» means «table» in Spanish; the hill is named for its table-like shape.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:m2:1
# text = «Mesa» means «table» in Spanish; the hill is named for its table-like shape.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Mesa	Mesa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	table	table	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	Spanish	Spanish	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	14	punct	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	hill	hill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nsubj:pass	_	_
13	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	aux:pass	_	_
14	named	name	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	parataxis	_	_
15	for	for	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
16	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	20	nmod:poss	_	_
17	table	table	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	17	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	like	like	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
20	shape	shape	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Mesa | table |  |  |  | in Spanish | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot table=Theme in spanish=Attribute |
| 2 | **name** | present · passive |  | the hill |  |  |  | for hill's like shape | vn appoint-29.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A mesa is a hill with a flat top like a table.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x1:1
# text = A mesa is a hill with a flat top like a table.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	mesa	mesa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	hill	hill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	top	top	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
10	like	like	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	table	table	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a mesa | a hill |  |  |  | with a flat top like a table | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We saw red mesas in the desert in Arizona.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x2:1
# text = We saw red mesas in the desert in Arizona.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	saw	see	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	red	red	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	mesas	mesa	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	desert	desert	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	Arizona	Arizona	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **see** | past | We | red mesas |  | the desert in Arizona |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer mesa=Stimulus |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Erosion slowly turned the plateau into mesas.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x3:1
# text = Erosion slowly turned the plateau into mesas.
1	Erosion	erosion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	slowly	slowly	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	turned	turn	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	mesas	mesa	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **turn** | past | Erosion | the plateau |  | mesas |  | slowly *property* | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V NP PP.trajectory»: agent=Agent plateau=Theme into mesa=Trajectory |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A butte is smaller and narrower than a mesa.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x4:1
# text = A butte is smaller and narrower than a mesa.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	butte	butte	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	smaller	small	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	narrower	narrow	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	4	conj	_	_
7	than	than	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	mesa	mesa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | a butte |  |  |  |  | small *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **be** |  | a butte *not said here* |  |  |  |  | than a mesa | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The old village was built on top of a mesa for safety.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x5:1
# text = The old village was built on top of a mesa for safety.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	village	village	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux:pass	_	_
5	built	build	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
6	on	on	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	top	top	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	mesa	mesa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	_
11	for	for	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	safety	safety	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **build** | past · passive |  | the old village |  | top of a mesa for safety |  |  | vn base-97.1 «NP V NP PP.source»: subject=Theme on top=Source |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Mesa» means «table» in Spanish.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x6:1
# text = «Mesa» means «table» in Spanish.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Mesa	Mesa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	table	table	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	Spanish	Spanish	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Mesa | table |  |  |  | in Spanish | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot table=Theme in spanish=Attribute |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The cowboy rode past the tall mesa.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x7:1
# text = The cowboy rode past the tall mesa.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	cowboy	cowboy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	rode	ride	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	past	past	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	tall	tall	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	mesa	mesa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ride** | past | the cowboy |  |  | the tall mesa |  |  | vn nonvehicle-51.4.2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Agent past mesa=Trajectory |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In Australia, flat-topped hills like mesas are sometimes called «jump-ups».

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:mesa:x8:1
# text = In Australia, flat-topped hills like mesas are sometimes called «jump-ups».
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	Australia	Australia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	topped	top	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	amod	_	_
7	hills	hill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	nsubj:pass	_	_
8	like	like	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	mesas	mesa	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
10	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	aux:pass	_	_
11	sometimes	sometimes	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	12	advmod	_	_
12	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
13	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	jump	jump	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	ups	up	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **top** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **call** | present · passive |  | topped hills like mesas |  | Australia |  | sometimes *property* | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: subject=Recipient |

<!-- 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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