---
title: plateau — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «plateau» in the school dictionary: A plateau is a large, flat area of high land, higher than the land around it. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# plateau

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** plateau, something, progress, Her, Tibetan Plateau, village · **What happens:** be, stop, go up, stay, reach, progress · **To what, where:** large flat area, time, same level, plateau, world, flat plateau

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A plateau is a large, flat area of high land, higher than the land around it.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:m1:1
# text = A plateau is a large, flat area of high land, higher than the land around it.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	plateau	plateau	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	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
7	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	area	area	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	high	high	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	land	land	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
13	higher	high	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	8	parataxis	_	_
14	than	than	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	land	land	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	obl	_	_
17	around	around	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
18	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	16	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a plateau | a large flat area |  |  |  | of high land | 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 -->
A plateau is a time when something stops going up or down and stays at the same level («Her progress reached a plateau»).

<!-- fold The tree, 23 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:m2:1
# text = A plateau is a time when something stops going up or down and stays at the same level («Her progress reached a plateau»).
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	plateau	plateau	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	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	8	advmod	_	_
7	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	8	nsubj	_	_
8	stops	stop	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
9	going	go	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	xcomp	_	_
10	up	up	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
11	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	down	down	ADV	RB	_	10	conj	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	stays	stay	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	conj	_	_
15	at	at	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	same	same	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	level	level	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obl	_	_
19	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	22	nmod:poss	_	_
22	progress	progress	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	nsubj	_	_
23	reached	reach	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	18	acl:relcl	_	_
24	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	25	det	_	_
25	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a plateau | a time |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **stop** | present | something |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 3 | **go up** | gerund | something *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn calibratable\_cos-45.6.1-1 «NP.attribute V»: agent=Attribute |
| 4 | **stay** | present | something *not said here* |  |  | the same level |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme at level=Location |
| 5 | **reach** *in a quote* | past | Her progress | a plateau |  |  |  |  | vn body\_motion-49.2-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Agent plateau=Theme |
| 6 | **progress** *in a quote* |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom progress «act intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To plateau is to stop growing or improving and stay level.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:m3:1
# text = To plateau is to stop growing or improving and stay level.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	stop	stop	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	growing	grow	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	xcomp	_	_
7	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	improving	improve	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	conj	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	stay	stay	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	conj	_	_
11	level	level	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | plateau |  |  |  |  | stop *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **grow** | gerund | plateau *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **improve** | gerund | plateau *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 4 | **stay** | infinitive | plateau *not said here* |  |  |  |  | level *property* | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The Tibetan Plateau is the highest in the world.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x1:1
# text = The Tibetan Plateau is the highest in the world.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	Tibetan	Tibetan	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	Plateau	Plateau	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	highest	high	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	0	root	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	world	world	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | the Tibetan Plateau |  |  | the world |  | high *property* | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The village stands on a flat plateau above the valley.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x2:1
# text = The village stands on a flat plateau above the valley.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	village	village	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	stands	stand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	on	on	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	flat	flat	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	above	above	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	valley	valley	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stand** | present | the village |  |  | a flat plateau above the valley |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Agent on plateau=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
On the graph, the line reaches a plateau after ten minutes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x3:1
# text = On the graph, the line reaches a plateau after ten minutes.
1	On	on	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	graph	graph	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	line	line	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	reaches	reach	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
10	after	after	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	ten	ten	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	12	nummod	_	_
12	minutes	minute	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **reach** | present | the line | a plateau |  | the graph | minute |  | vn body\_motion-49.2-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Agent plateau=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My reading scores have plateaued this term.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x4:1
# text = My reading scores have plateaued this term.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
2	reading	reading	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	scores	score	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
4	have	have	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	plateaued	plateau	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
6	this	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	7	det	_	_
7	term	term	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **plateau** | present · perfect | My reading scores | this term |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **score** |  | My |  |  |  |  |  | nom score «cognition transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Athletes sometimes hit a plateau in training.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x5:1
# text = Athletes sometimes hit a plateau in training.
1	Athletes	athlete	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	sometimes	sometimes	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	3	advmod	_	_
3	hit	hit	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	plateau	plateau	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	training	training	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 | **hit** | present | Athletes | a plateau |  | training |  | sometimes *property* | vn throw-17.1-1 «NP V NP PP.destinations»: agent=Agent plateau=Theme in training=Destination |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The temperature rose, then plateaued at 100 °C as the water boiled.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x6:1
# text = The temperature rose, then plateaued at 100 °C as the water boiled.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	temperature	temperature	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	rose	rise	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	then	then	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	6	advmod	_	_
6	plateaued	plateau	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	conj	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	100	100	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	6	obl	_	_
9	°	°	SYM	SYM	_	10	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	C	C	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
11	as	as	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
14	boiled	boil	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	13	acl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **rise** | past | the temperature |  |  |  |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **plateau** | participle | the temperature *not said here* | ° C |  | 100 | then | as the water | tree rules |
| 3 | **boil** | participle |  | the water *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn cooking-45.3 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cows grazed on the windy plateau.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:plateau:x7:1
# text = Cows grazed on the windy plateau.
1	Cows	cow	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	grazed	graze	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	windy	windy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	plateau	plateau	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 | **graze** | past | Cows |  |  |  |  | on the windy plateau | vn dine-39.5 «NP V PP.patient»: agent=Agent on plateau=Patient |

<!-- 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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