---
title: predate — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «predate» in the school dictionary: To exist or happen earlier than something else: «Dinosaurs predate humans by millions of years.». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# predate

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Dinosaurs, document, real day, Stonehenge, oak tree, Fossils · **What happens:** exist, happen, predate, write, be, backdate · **To what, where:** humans, date, document, other animals, pyramids, some · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«predate» in the school dictionary: its 3 meanings for a pupil and its 6 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: [predate in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/predate.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To exist or happen earlier than something else: «Dinosaurs predate humans by millions of years.».

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:m1:1
# text = To exist or happen earlier than something else: «Dinosaurs predate humans by millions of years.».
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	exist	exist	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	happen	happen	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
5	earlier	early	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	4	advmod	_	_
6	than	than	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	5	obl	_	_
8	else	else	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
10	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	Dinosaurs	dinosaur	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	nsubj	_	_
12	predate	predate	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	advcl	_	_
13	humans	human	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	obj	_	_
14	by	by	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	millions	million	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	obl	_	_
16	of	of	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
17	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **exist** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **happen** | infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | early *property* | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **predate** *in a quote* | present | Dinosaurs | humans |  |  |  | by millions of years | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme human=Co-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 -->
To write a date on a document that is earlier than the real day (also «backdate»).

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:m2:1
# text = To write a date on a document that is earlier than the real day (also «backdate»).
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	write	write	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	date	date	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	on	on	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	document	document	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
8	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	10	nsubj	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
10	earlier	early	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	7	acl:relcl	_	_
11	than	than	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
13	real	real	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
14	day	day	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	_
15	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	18	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	also	also	ADV	RB	_	18	advmod	_	_
17	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	18	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	backdate	backdate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	18	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	18	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **write** | to-infinitive |  | a date |  | a document |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent date=Theme on document=Destination |
| 2 | **is** | present | a document |  |  |  | day | early *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **backdate** *in a quote* | infinitive | the real day *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: science, of animals — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To hunt and eat other animals as prey (a related word: predator).

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:m3:1
# text = To hunt and eat other animals as prey (a related word: predator).
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	hunt	hunt	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	eat	eat	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
5	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	animals	animal	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
7	as	as	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	prey	prey	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
9	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	related	related	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	14	punct	_	_
14	predator	predator	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hunt** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **eat** | infinitive |  | other animals |  |  |  | as prey | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent animal=Patient |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stonehenge predates the pyramids of Giza in some of its parts.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x1:1
# text = Stonehenge predates the pyramids of Giza in some of its parts.
1	Stonehenge	Stonehenge	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	predates	predate	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	pyramids	pyramid	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	Giza	Giza	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	4	nmod	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	parts	part	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **predate** | present | Stonehenge | the pyramids of Giza |  | some |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme pyramid=Co-Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The oak tree predates every house in our street.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x2:1
# text = The oak tree predates every house in our street.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	oak	oak	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	predates	predate	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	6	det	_	_
6	house	house	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
9	street	street	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **predate** | present | the oak tree | every house |  | our street |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme house=Co-Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Fossils show that sharks predate dinosaurs.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x3:1
# text = Fossils show that sharks predate dinosaurs.
1	Fossils	fossil	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	show	show	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
4	sharks	shark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
5	predate	predate	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	ccomp	_	_
6	dinosaurs	dinosaur	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **show** | present | Fossils |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **predate** | present | sharks | dinosaurs |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme dinosaur=Co-Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Owls predate on mice and voles.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x4:1
# text = Owls predate on mice and voles.
1	Owls	owl	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	predate	predate	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	on	on	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	mice	mouse	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	voles	vole	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **predate** | present | Owls |  |  |  |  | on mice and voles | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Some stories of King Arthur predate the castles they mention.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x5:1
# text = Some stories of King Arthur predate the castles they mention.
1	Some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	2	det	_	_
2	stories	story	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	King	King	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	Arthur	Arthur	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	predate	predate	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	castles	castle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	_
9	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	mention	mention	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **predate** | infinitive | some stories of King Arthur | the castles |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme castle=Co-Theme |
| 2 | **mention** *speech: other* | present | stories *= story* | the castles *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent castle=Topic |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad predated the form by mistake, so he had to fill in a new one.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:predate:x6:1
# text = Dad predated the form by mistake, so he had to fill in a new one.
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	predated	predate	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	form	form	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	by	by	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	mistake	mistake	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	so	so	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
9	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
11	to	to	PART	TO	_	12	mark	_	_
12	fill	fill	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	xcomp	_	_
13	in	in	ADP	RP	_	12	compound:prt	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
15	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	_
16	one	one	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **predate** | past | Dad | the form |  |  |  | by mistake | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme form=Co-Theme |
| 2 | **have** | past | Dad |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **fill in** | to-infinitive | Dad *not said here* | a new one |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent one=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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