---
title: pillar — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «pillar» in the school dictionary: A pillar is a tall, strong post of stone, wood or metal that holds up part of a building or stands as a monument. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# pillar

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** pillar, wood, important person, temple roof, God, Grandpa · **What happens:** be, hold up, stand, support, rise, lead · **To what, where:** tall strong post, part, tall column, important person, pillar, tall stone pillars · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pillar is a tall, strong post of stone, wood or metal that holds up part of a building or stands as a monument.

<!-- fold The tree, 24 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:m1:1
# text = A pillar is a tall, strong post of stone, wood or metal that holds up part of a building or stands as a monument.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
5	tall	tall	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
7	strong	strong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	post	post	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	stone	stone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
12	wood	wood	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	_
13	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	metal	metal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	_
15	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	16	nsubj	_	_
16	holds	hold	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	acl:relcl	_	_
17	up	up	ADP	RP	_	16	compound:prt	_	_
18	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	obj	_	_
19	of	of	ADP	IN	_	21	case	_	_
20	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	21	det	_	_
21	building	building	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	nmod	_	_
22	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	23	cc	_	_
23	stands	stand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	16	conj	_	_
24	as	as	ADP	IN	_	26	case	_	_
25	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	26	det	_	_
26	monument	monument	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a pillar | a tall strong post and wood or metal |  |  |  | of stone | tree rules |
| 2 | **hold up** | present | wood or metal | part of a building |  |  |  |  | vn support-15.3-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot part=Theme |
| 3 | **stand** | present | wood or metal *not said here* |  |  |  |  | as a monument | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: 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}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pillar of smoke, fire or cloud is a tall column of it.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:m2:1
# text = A pillar of smoke, fire or cloud is a tall column of it.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	smoke	smoke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
6	fire	fire	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	cloud	cloud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	tall	tall	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	column	column	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
13	of	of	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a pillar of smoke and fire or cloud | a tall column |  |  |  | of column | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pillar of a community or group is an important person or idea that supports it: a pillar of the church.

<!-- fold The tree, 21 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:m3:1
# text = A pillar of a community or group is an important person or idea that supports it: a pillar of the church.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	community	community	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
7	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
9	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	important	important	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	idea	idea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	conj	_	_
14	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	15	nsubj	_	_
15	supports	support	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	acl:relcl	_	_
16	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	15	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	19	punct	_	_
18	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	19	det	_	_
19	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obl	_	_
20	of	of	ADP	IN	_	22	case	_	_
21	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
22	church	church	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a pillar of a community or group | a important person or idea |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **support** | present | a important person or idea | pillar |  |  |  | a pillar of the church *obl* | vn admire-31.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer it=Stimulus |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The temple roof stood on tall stone pillars.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x1:1
# text = The temple roof stood on tall stone pillars.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	temple	temple	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	roof	roof	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	stood	stand	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	on	on	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	tall	tall	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
7	stone	stone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	pillars	pillar	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stand** | past | the temple roof |  |  | tall stone pillars |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Agent on pillar=Location |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pillar of smoke rose from the bonfire.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x2:1
# text = A pillar of smoke rose from the bonfire.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	smoke	smoke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	rose	rise	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	bonfire	bonfire	NOUN	NN	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 | **rise** | past | a pillar of smoke |  |  | the bonfire |  |  | vn escape-51.1-1 «NP V PP.initial\_location»: agent=Theme from bonfire=Initial\_Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
God led the Israelites with a pillar of cloud.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x3:1
# text = God led the Israelites with a pillar of cloud.
1	God	God	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	led	lead	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	Israelites	Israelite	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	cloud	cloud	NOUN	NN	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 | **lead** | past | God | the Israelites |  |  |  | with a pillar of cloud | vn accompany-51.7 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent israelite=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Grandpa was a pillar of the community.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x4:1
# text = Grandpa was a pillar of the community.
1	Grandpa	Grandpa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	community	community	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | Grandpa | a pillar |  |  |  | of the community | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The Five Pillars of Islam are the main duties of Muslims.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x5:1
# text = The Five Pillars of Islam are the main duties of Muslims.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	Five	five	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
3	Pillars	Pillar	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	9	nsubj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	Islam	Islam	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
6	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	main	main	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	duties	duty	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	Muslims	Muslim	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the Five Pillars of Islam | the main duties |  |  |  | of Muslims | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In the UK, post boxes used to be called pillar boxes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x6:1
# text = In the UK, post boxes used to be called pillar boxes.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	UK	UK	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	post	post	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	boxes	box	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
7	used	use	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
9	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	xcomp	_	_
11	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	boxes	box	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | past | post boxes |  |  | the UK |  |  | vn use-105.1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **call** | to-infinitive · passive | post boxes *not said here* | pillar boxes |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: box=Recipient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We were sent from pillar to post.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x7:1
# text = We were sent from pillar to post.
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:pass	_	_
3	sent	send	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	from	from	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	post	post	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 | **send** | past · passive |  | We |  | pillar |  | to post | vn send-11.1-1 «NP V NP PP.initial\_location PP.destination»: subject=Theme from pillar=Initial\_Location to post=Destination |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Around and around the pillar ran the Princess.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:pillar:x8:1
# text = Around and around the pillar ran the Princess.
1	Around	around	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
2	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	3	cc	_	_
3	around	around	ADP	IN	_	1	conj	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	pillar	pillar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
6	ran	run	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	Princess	Princess	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **run** | past | the pillar | the Princess |  |  |  | around *property* | vn run-51.3.2-2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent princess=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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