---
title: pat — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «pat» in the school dictionary: To pat means to touch someone or something gently and quickly with your flat hand, several times. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# pat

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** pat, I, you, teacher, She, He · **What happens:** mean, touch, be, pat, have off, know · **To what, where:** someone, light, small flat piece, butter, something, pat · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«pat» in the school dictionary: its 4 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: [pat in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/pat.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To pat means to touch someone or something gently and quickly with your flat hand, several times.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:m1:1
# text = To pat means to touch someone or something gently and quickly with your flat hand, several times.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	touch	touch	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	5	obj	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	6	conj	_	_
9	gently	gently	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	quickly	quickly	ADV	RB	_	9	conj	_	_
12	with	with	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
13	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	15	nmod:poss	_	_
14	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	hand	hand	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
17	several	several	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	times	time	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | pat |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **touch** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | pat *not said here* | someone |  |  |  | with your flat hand; gently *property* | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP PP.instrument»: agent=Agent someone=Experiencer with hand=Instrument |

<!-- .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 pat is a light, gentle touch with your hand.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:m2:1
# text = A pat is a light, gentle touch with your hand.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pat	pat	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	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	gentle	gentle	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	touch	touch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
9	with	with	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	hand	hand	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a pat | a light |  |  |  | gentle touch with your hand *nmod* | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pat of butter is a small flat piece.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:m3:1
# text = A pat of butter is a small flat piece.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	butter	butter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
7	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
8	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	piece	piece	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a pat of butter | a small flat piece |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pat** |  |  | butter |  |  |  |  | nom pat «event transitive»: of=patient |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To have something off pat means to know it perfectly by heart.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:m4:1
# text = To have something off pat means to know it perfectly by heart.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	have	have	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	ccomp	_	_
3	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	obj	_	_
4	off	off	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
5	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	know	know	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	_
9	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	obj	_	_
10	perfectly	perfectly	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
11	by	by	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	heart	heart	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have off** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | something |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **know** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | pat |  |  |  | by heart; perfectly *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1-1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Experiencer it=Stimulus |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Can I pat your dog?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x1:1
# text = Can I pat your dog?
1	Can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
2	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	pat	pat	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pat** | can | I | your dog |  |  |  |  | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent dog=Experiencer |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ask the owner before you pat a dog.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x2:1
# text = Ask the owner before you pat a dog.
1	Ask	ask	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	owner	owner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	before	before	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
5	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	pat	pat	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	advcl	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ask** *speech: ask* | imperative | you *not said here* | the owner |  |  |  |  | vn inquire-37.1.2 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent owner=Recipient |
| 2 | **pat** | present | you | a dog |  |  |  |  | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent dog=Experiencer |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Pat your skin dry with a towel.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x3:1
# text = Pat your skin dry with a towel.
1	Pat	pat	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	skin	skin	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	dry	dry	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	xcomp	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	towel	towel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pat** | imperative | you *not said here* | your skin |  |  |  | dry *property* | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent skin=Experiencer |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The teacher gave me a pat on the back.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x4:1
# text = The teacher gave me a pat on the back.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	teacher	teacher	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	gave	give	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	me	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	iobj	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	on	on	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	back	back	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | past | the teacher | a pat | me | the back |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP NP PP.asset»: agent=Agent i=Recipient pat=Theme on back=Asset |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She patted the dough into a circle.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x5:1
# text = She patted the dough into a circle.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	patted	pat	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	dough	dough	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	into	into	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	circle	circle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pat** | past | She | the dough |  | a circle |  |  | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent dough=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He had the poem off pat.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x6:1
# text = He had the poem off pat.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	poem	poem	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	off	off	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | He | the poem |  |  |  | off pat | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent poem=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pat of butter melted on the toast.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x7:1
# text = A pat of butter melted on the toast.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pat	pat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	butter	butter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	melted	melt	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
6	on	on	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	toast	toast	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **melt** | participle |  | a pat of butter *not said here* |  | the toast |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4-1 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **pat** |  |  | butter |  |  |  |  | nom pat «event transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
And then his grandmother patted his head and told him other stories.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pat:x8:1
# text = And then his grandmother patted his head and told him other stories.
1	And	and	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
2	then	then	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	5	advmod	_	_
3	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	grandmother	grandmother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	patted	pat	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	head	head	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	told	tell	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	conj	_	_
10	him	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	iobj	_	_
11	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	stories	story	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pat** | past | his grandmother | his head |  |  | then |  | vn touch-20-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent head=Experiencer |
| 2 | **tell** *speech: assert* | past | his grandmother *not said here* | other stories | him *= he* |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent he=Recipient story=Topic |

<!-- 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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