---
title: portrayal — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «portrayal» in the school dictionary: The way someone or something is shown or described in a picture, film, play or book: «a funny portrayal of a teacher». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# portrayal

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** actor, his, act, portrayal, Her, book · **What happens:** show, describe, portray, perform, scare, give · **To what, where:** someone, picture, teacher, character, king, something · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The way someone or something is shown or described in a picture, film, play or book: «a funny portrayal of a teacher».

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:m1:1
# text = The way someone or something is shown or described in a picture, film, play or book: «a funny portrayal of a teacher».
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl:unmarked	_	_
3	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	7	nsubj	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	3	conj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	shown	show	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	described	describe	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	conj	_	_
10	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	picture	picture	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
14	film	film	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
16	play	play	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	_
17	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	book	book	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	7	punct	_	_
20	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	23	det	_	_
22	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	23	amod	_	_
23	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	parataxis	_	_
24	of	of	ADP	IN	_	26	case	_	_
25	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	26	det	_	_
26	teacher	teacher	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	23	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **show** | present · passive |  | someone |  |  |  | the way *obl:unmarked* | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP S»: subject=Recipient clause=Topic |
| 2 | **describe** | participle |  |  |  | a picture and film and play or book |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **portray** *in a quote* |  |  | a teacher |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- .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 -->
An actor's performance of a character: «his portrayal of the king».

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:m2:1
# text = An actor's performance of a character: «his portrayal of the king».
1	An	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	actor	actor	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	performance	performance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	character	character	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	11	punct	_	_
9	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	appos	_	_
12	of	of	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	king	king	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **perform** |  | a actor | a character |  |  |  |  | nom performance «communication transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |
| 2 | **portray** *in a quote* |  | his *= he* | the king |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The act of describing something in a certain way, true or unfair.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:m3:1
# text = The act of describing something in a certain way, true or unfair.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	act	act	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	4	mark	_	_
4	describing	describe	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	acl	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	certain	certain	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	true	true	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	unfair	unfair	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **describe** | gerund | the act *not said here* | something |  | a certain way |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent something=Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her portrayal of the Wicked Witch scared the little ones.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x1:1
# text = Her portrayal of the Wicked Witch scared the little ones.
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	Wicked	wicked	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	Witch	Witch	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
7	scared	scare	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	ones	one	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **scare** | past | Her portrayal of the Wicked Witch | the little ones |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Stimulus one=Experiencer |
| 2 | **portray** |  | Her *= she* | the Wicked Witch |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The book gives a true portrayal of life in a coal-mining town.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x2:1
# text = The book gives a true portrayal of life in a coal-mining town.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	book	book	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	gives	give	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	true	true	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	life	life	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
11	coal	coal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	mining	mining	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	compound	_	_
14	town	town	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | present | the book | a true portrayal of life |  | a mining town |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent portrayal=Theme |
| 2 | **portray** |  |  | life |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Some people think the film's portrayal of farmers is unfair.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x3:1
# text = Some people think the film's portrayal of farmers is unfair.
1	Some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	2	det	_	_
2	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	think	think	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	film	film	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	's	's	PART	POS	_	5	case	_	_
7	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	farmers	farmer	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
11	unfair	unfair	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **think** *speech: other* | present | some people |  |  |  |  |  | vn focus-87.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is** | present | the film's portrayal of farmers |  |  |  |  | unfair *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **portray** |  | the film | farmers |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We compared two portrayals of Robin Hood.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x4:1
# text = We compared two portrayals of Robin Hood.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	compared	compare	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	portrayals	portrayal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	Robin	Robin	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	Hood	Hood	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **compare** | past | We | two portrayals of Robin Hood |  |  |  |  | vn amalgamate-22.2-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent portrayal=Patient |
| 2 | **portray** |  |  | Robin Hood |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: of=patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The painting is a portrayal of the queen as a young girl.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x5:1
# text = The painting is a portrayal of the queen as a young girl.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	painting	painting	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	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	queen	queen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
9	as	as	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	young	young	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	girl	girl	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the painting | a portrayal |  |  |  | of the queen as a young girl | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
His portrayal of a nervous pupil made us laugh.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x6:1
# text = His portrayal of a nervous pupil made us laugh.
1	His	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	portrayal	portrayal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	nervous	nervous	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	pupil	pupil	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
7	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	us	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	7	obj	_	_
9	laugh	laugh	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | His portrayal of a nervous pupil | us |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **laugh** | infinitive | us *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **portray** |  | His *= he* | a nervous pupil |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Old cartoons often had hurtful portrayals of other peoples.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:portrayal:x7:1
# text = Old cartoons often had hurtful portrayals of other peoples.
1	Old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	cartoons	cartoon	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	often	often	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	hurtful	hurtful	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	portrayals	portrayal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	peoples	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | Old cartoons | hurtful portrayals of other peoples |  |  |  | often *property* | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent portrayal=Patient |
| 2 | **portray** |  |  | other peoples |  |  |  |  | nom portrayal «communication transitive»: of=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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