---
title: polecat — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «polecat» in the school dictionary: A polecat is a wild animal of the weasel family, with dark brown fur and a pale face mask, that gives off a strong smell when frightened. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# polecat

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** polecat, that, Calling, they, Pet ferrets, Polecats · **What happens:** be, give off, frighten, call, mean, hunt · **To what, where:** wild animal, strong smell, old country word, USA, someone, rabbits · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A polecat is a wild animal of the weasel family, with dark brown fur and a pale face mask, that gives off a strong smell when frightened.

<!-- fold The tree, 27 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:m1:1
# text = A polecat is a wild animal of the weasel family, with dark brown fur and a pale face mask, that gives off a strong smell when frightened.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	wild	wild	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	animal	animal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	weasel	weasel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	family	family	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	with	with	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
13	dark	dark	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
14	brown	brown	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	fur	fur	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	_
16	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
17	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
18	pale	pale	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
19	face	face	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	compound	_	_
20	mask	mask	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	23	punct	_	_
22	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	23	nsubj	_	_
23	gives	give	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	parataxis	_	_
24	off	off	ADP	RP	_	23	compound:prt	_	_
25	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	27	det	_	_
26	strong	strong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	27	amod	_	_
27	smell	smell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	obj	_	_
28	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	29	advmod	_	_
29	frightened	frighten	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	23	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
30	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a polecat | a wild animal |  |  |  | of the weasel family and dark brown fur and a pale face mask | tree rules |
| 2 | **give off** | present | that | a strong smell |  |  |  |  | vn substance\_emission-43.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Source smell=Theme |
| 3 | **frighten** | participle | that *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |

<!-- .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: USA — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In the USA, «polecat» is an old country word for a skunk.

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:m2:1
# text = In the USA, «polecat» is an old country word for a skunk.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	USA	USA	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
9	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
10	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
11	country	country	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
13	for	for	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	skunk	skunk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | polecat | a old country word |  | the USA |  | for a skunk | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Calling someone a polecat once meant they were nasty.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:m3:1
# text = Calling someone a polecat once meant they were nasty.
1	Calling	call	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	csubj	_	_
2	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	1	obj	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	once	once	ADV	RB	NumForm=Word|NumType=Mult	6	advmod	_	_
6	meant	mean	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
8	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
9	nasty	nasty	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **call** | gerund |  | someone |  |  |  |  | vn dub-29.3.2 «NP V NP NP»: agent=Agent someone=Theme polecat=Result |
| 2 | **mean** | past | Calling |  |  |  |  | once *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** | past | they |  |  |  |  | nasty *property* | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The polecat hunted rabbits at night.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x1:1
# text = The polecat hunted rabbits at night.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	hunted	hunt	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	rabbits	rabbit	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	night	night	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hunt** | past | the polecat | rabbits |  |  | night |  | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent rabbit=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Pet ferrets are related to polecats.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x2:1
# text = Pet ferrets are related to polecats.
1	Pet	pet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	ferrets	ferret	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	related	related	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	polecats	polecat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Pet ferrets |  |  |  |  | to polecats; related *property* | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Polecats live in Britain and Europe.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x3:1
# text = Polecats live in Britain and Europe.
1	Polecats	polecat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	live	live	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	in	in	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	Britain	Britain	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	Europe	Europe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | present | Polecats |  |  | Britain and Europe |  |  | vn lodge-46 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in britain=Location |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The polecat has a dark mask on its face.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x4:1
# text = The polecat has a dark mask on its face.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	dark	dark	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	mask	mask	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	on	on	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
9	face	face	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | the polecat | a dark mask |  | polecat's face |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mask=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
(USA) Grandpa called the skunk a polecat.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x5:1
# text = (USA) Grandpa called the skunk a polecat.
1	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	USA	USA	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	2	punct	_	_
4	Grandpa	Grandpa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	called	call	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	skunk	skunk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **call** | past | Grandpa | USA |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent skunk=Recipient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A frightened polecat gives off a nasty smell.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x6:1
# text = A frightened polecat gives off a nasty smell.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	frightened	frightened	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	gives	give	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	off	off	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	nasty	nasty	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	smell	smell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give off** | present | a frightened polecat | a nasty smell |  |  |  |  | vn substance\_emission-43.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Source smell=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She had a mane like a horse, horns like a deer, a face like a bear, eyes like a polecat; while her body had something of each.

<!-- fold The tree, 27 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:polecat:x7:1
# text = She had a mane like a horse, horns like a deer, a face like a bear, eyes like a polecat; while her body had something of each.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|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	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	mane	mane	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	like	like	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	horse	horse	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	horns	horn	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
10	like	like	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	deer	deer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	face	face	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	conj	_	_
16	like	like	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
17	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
18	bear	bear	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
20	eyes	eye	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	conj	_	_
21	like	like	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	23	det	_	_
23	polecat	polecat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	28	punct	_	_
25	while	while	SCONJ	IN	_	28	mark	_	_
26	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	27	nmod:poss	_	_
27	body	body	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	28	nsubj	_	_
28	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
29	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	28	obj	_	_
30	of	of	ADP	IN	_	31	case	_	_
31	each	each	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	29	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
32	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | She | a mane |  |  |  | like a horse  horns like a deer and a face like a bear and eyes like a polecat | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mane=Patient |
| 2 | **have** | past | horse's body | something |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=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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