---
title: prosecute — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «prosecute» in the school dictionary: To officially accuse someone of a crime in a court of law and try to prove they are guilty. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# prosecute

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** they, police, lawyer, sign, general · **What happens:** accuse, try, prove, be, carry on, continue · **To what, where:** someone, court, something, plan, Shoplifters, driver · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«prosecute» in the school dictionary: its 2 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: [prosecute in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/prosecute.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To officially accuse someone of a crime in a court of law and try to prove they are guilty.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:m1:1
# text = To officially accuse someone of a crime in a court of law and try to prove they are guilty.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	3	mark	_	_
2	officially	officially	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	accuse	accuse	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	3	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	crime	crime	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	court	court	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	law	law	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	try	try	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
15	to	to	PART	TO	_	16	mark	_	_
16	prove	prove	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	xcomp	_	_
17	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	19	nsubj	_	_
18	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	cop	_	_
19	guilty	guilty	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **accuse** | to-infinitive |  | someone |  | a court of law |  | officially *property* | vn suspect-81 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Agent someone=Theme |
| 2 | **try** | infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn try-61.1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality |
| 3 | **prove** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn declare-29.4-1-1 «NP V what S\_INF»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **is** | present | they |  |  |  |  | guilty *property* | 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}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To carry on or continue something, such as a war or a plan, until it is finished.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:m2:1
# text = To carry on or continue something, such as a war or a plan, until it is finished.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	carry	carry	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	on	on	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	continue	continue	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
6	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=ADP	11	case	_	_
9	as	as	ADP	IN	_	8	fixed	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	war	war	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	plan	plan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	19	punct	_	_
16	until	until	SCONJ	IN	_	19	mark	_	_
17	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	19	nsubj:pass	_	_
18	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	aux:pass	_	_
19	finished	finish	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **carry on** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn sustain-55.6 «NP V NP PP.instrument»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **continue** | infinitive |  | something |  |  |  | such a war or a plan | vn sustain-55.6 «NP V NP PP.instrument»: agent=Agent something=Theme |
| 3 | **finish** | present · passive |  | plan |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V NP.eventuality»: subject=Eventuality |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Shoplifters will be prosecuted.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x1:1
# text = Shoplifters will be prosecuted.
1	Shoplifters	shoplifter	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	prosecuted	prosecute	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **prosecute** | future · passive |  | Shoplifters |  |  |  |  | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The police decided to prosecute the driver for speeding.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x2:1
# text = The police decided to prosecute the driver for speeding.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	police	police	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	decided	decide	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	prosecute	prosecute	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	driver	driver	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	speeding	speeding	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **decide** | past | the police |  |  |  |  |  | vn correspond-36.1-1 «NP V what S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **prosecute** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | the police *not said here* | the driver |  |  |  | for speeding | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent driver=Patient for speeding=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He was prosecuted for stealing a car.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x3:1
# text = He was prosecuted for stealing a car.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	prosecuted	prosecute	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
5	stealing	steal	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	car	car	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **prosecute** | past · passive |  | He |  |  |  |  | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |
| 2 | **steal** | gerund |  | a car |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location car=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The lawyer who prosecutes is called the prosecutor.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x4:1
# text = The lawyer who prosecutes is called the prosecutor.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	lawyer	lawyer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	4	nsubj	_	_
4	prosecutes	prosecute	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	acl:relcl	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux:pass	_	_
6	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	prosecutor	prosecutor	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **prosecute** | present | the lawyer |  |  |  |  |  | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **call** | present · passive |  | the lawyer |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: subject=Recipient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The sign said trespassers would be prosecuted.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x5:1
# text = The sign said trespassers would be prosecuted.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	sign	sign	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	trespassers	trespasser	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj:pass	_	_
5	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	prosecuted	prosecute	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | the sign |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **prosecute** | would · passive |  | trespassers |  |  |  |  | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The general prosecuted the war for five years.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:prosecute:x6:1
# text = The general prosecuted the war for five years.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	general	general	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	prosecuted	prosecute	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	war	war	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	five	five	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	8	nummod	_	_
8	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **prosecute** | past | the general | the war |  |  | year |  | vn prosecute-33.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent war=Patient |

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**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.

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