---
title: porcupines — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «porcupines» in the school dictionary: Porcupines are more than one porcupine: large rodents covered in long sharp quills that protect them from predators. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# porcupines

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Porcupines, long sharp quills, New World porcupines, Old World porcupines, North American porcupines, Wolves · **What happens:** be, cover, protect, climb, live, chew · **To what, where:** one porcupine, large rodents, Porcupines, trees, Americas, ground · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Porcupines are more than one porcupine: large rodents covered in long sharp quills that protect them from predators.

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:m1:1
# text = Porcupines are more than one porcupine: large rodents covered in long sharp quills that protect them from predators.
1	Porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	more	more	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp|ExtPos=ADV	5	advmod	_	_
4	than	than	ADP	IN	_	3	fixed	_	_
5	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	6	nummod	_	_
6	porcupine	porcupine	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	9	punct	_	_
8	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	rodents	rodent	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	appos	_	_
10	covered	cover	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	9	acl	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
12	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
13	sharp	sharp	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
14	quills	quill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	obl	_	_
15	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	16	nsubj	_	_
16	protect	protect	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	acl:relcl	_	_
17	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	16	obj	_	_
18	from	from	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
19	predators	predator	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	16	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Porcupines | one porcupine |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **cover** | participle |  | large rodents *not said here* |  |  |  | in long sharp quills | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent in quill=Theme |
| 3 | **protect** | present | long sharp quills | Porcupines *= porcupine* |  |  |  | from predators | vn defend-72.3 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent they=Beneficiary from predator=Theme |

<!-- .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 -->
There are New World porcupines, which climb trees in the Americas, and Old World porcupines, which live on the ground in Africa, Asia and southern Europe.

<!-- fold The tree, 26 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:m2:1
# text = There are New World porcupines, which climb trees in the Americas, and Old World porcupines, which live on the ground in Africa, Asia and southern Europe.
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	_
2	are	be	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	New	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
4	World	world	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
8	climb	climb	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
9	trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obj	_	_
10	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	Americas	AMERICAS	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
14	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
15	Old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
16	World	world	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
19	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	20	nsubj	_	_
20	live	live	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	17	acl:relcl	_	_
21	on	on	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	23	det	_	_
23	ground	ground	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obl	_	_
24	in	in	ADP	IN	_	25	case	_	_
25	Africa	Africa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	20	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	27	punct	_	_
27	Asia	Asia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	25	conj	_	_
28	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	30	cc	_	_
29	southern	southern	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	30	amod	_	_
30	Europe	Europe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	25	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **does** | present | New World porcupines and Old World porcupines |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **climb** | present | New World porcupines and Old World porcupines | trees |  | the Americas |  |  | vn run-51.3.2 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Initial\_Location tree=Theme |
| 3 | **live** | present | Old World porcupines |  |  | the ground |  | in Africa and Asia and southern Europe | vn lodge-46 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in africa=Location |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Porcupines are covered in thousands of sharp quills.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x1:1
# text = Porcupines are covered in thousands of sharp quills.
1	Porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	covered	cover	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	thousands	thousand	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	sharp	sharp	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	quills	quill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cover** | present · passive |  | Porcupines |  |  |  | in thousands of sharp quills | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: subject=Destination in thousand=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Porcupines are mostly awake at night.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x2:1
# text = Porcupines are mostly awake at night.
1	Porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	mostly	mostly	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	awake	awake	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	night	night	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	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 | Porcupines |  |  |  | night | awake, mostly *property* | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In winter, North American porcupines chew tree bark.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x3:1
# text = In winter, North American porcupines chew tree bark.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	winter	winter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	North	North	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
5	American	American	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
7	chew	chew	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	bark	bark	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **chew** | present | North American porcupines | tree bark |  |  | winter |  | vn chew-39.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bark=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Porcupines rattle their quills to warn enemies.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x4:1
# text = Porcupines rattle their quills to warn enemies.
1	Porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	rattle	rattle	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	quills	quill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	warn	warn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
7	enemies	enemy	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **rattle** | present | Porcupines | Porcupines's quills |  |  |  |  | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V NP.theme»: agent=Agent quill=Theme |
| 2 | **warn** *speech: warn* | to-infinitive | Porcupines *not said here* | enemies |  |  |  |  | vn advise-37.9-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent enemy=Recipient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Young porcupines are called porcupettes.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x5:1
# text = Young porcupines are called porcupettes.
1	Young	young	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	porcupettes	porcupette	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **call** | present · passive |  | Young porcupines |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: subject=Recipient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wolves usually leave porcupines alone.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x6:1
# text = Wolves usually leave porcupines alone.
1	Wolves	wolf	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	usually	usually	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	leave	leave	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
5	alone	alone	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leave** | present | Wolves | porcupines |  |  |  | alone, usually *property* | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent porcupine=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Porcupines are good at climbing trees.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x7:1
# text = Porcupines are good at climbing trees.
1	Porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	at	at	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
5	climbing	climb	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	_
6	trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Porcupines |  |  |  |  | good *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **climb** | gerund | Porcupines *not said here* | trees |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Initial\_Location tree=Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We made porcupines out of clay and cocktail sticks.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:porcupines:x8:1
# text = We made porcupines out of clay and cocktail sticks.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	porcupines	porcupine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
4	out	out	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	clay	clay	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
8	cocktail	cocktail	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	sticks	stick	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | We | porcupines |  | clay and cocktail sticks |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent porcupine=Product |

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<!-- /div -->

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