---
title: punctuation — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «punctuation» in the school dictionary: Punctuation is the set of marks we use in writing, such as full stops, commas, question marks and apostrophes, to make the meaning clear and show where to pause. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# punctuation

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Punctuation, we, writing, meaning, you, your · **What happens:** be, use, stop, make, clear, show · **To what, where:** set, marks, writing, commas, meaning, way · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Punctuation is the set of marks we use in writing, such as full stops, commas, question marks and apostrophes, to make the meaning clear and show where to pause.

<!-- fold The tree, 29 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:m1:1
# text = Punctuation is the set of marks we use in writing, such as full stops, commas, question marks and apostrophes, to make the meaning clear and show where to pause.
1	Punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	set	set	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	_
7	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
8	use	use	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	acl:relcl	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	writing	writing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=SCONJ	15	mark	_	_
13	as	as	ADP	IN	_	12	fixed	_	_
14	full	full	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	conj	_	_
15	stops	stop	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
17	commas	comma	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
19	question	question	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	compound	_	_
20	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	17	conj	_	_
21	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	22	cc	_	_
22	apostrophes	apostrophe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	20	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	25	punct	_	_
24	to	to	PART	TO	_	25	mark	_	_
25	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	15	conj	_	_
26	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	27	det	_	_
27	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	25	obj	_	_
28	clear	clear	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	25	xcomp	_	_
29	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	30	cc	_	_
30	show	show	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	28	conj	_	_
31	where	where	ADV	WRB	PronType=Rel	33	advmod	_	_
32	to	to	PART	TO	_	33	mark	_	_
33	pause	pause	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	30	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
34	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Punctuation | the set |  |  |  | of marks | tree rules |
| 2 | **use** | present | we | marks *not said here* |  | writing |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mark=Patient |
| 3 | **stop** | present | writing *not said here* | commas and question marks and apostrophes |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V NP.eventuality»: agent=Subeventuality comma=Eventuality |
| 4 | **make** | to-infinitive | writing *not said here* | the meaning |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 5 | **clear** | infinitive | the meaning *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn clear-10.3-1 «NP.Source V»: agent=Source |
| 6 | **show** | infinitive | the meaning *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V how S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 7 | **pause** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn linger-53.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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 -->
Punctuation is also the way you use these marks: «Check your punctuation».

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:m2:1
# text = Punctuation is also the way you use these marks: «Check your punctuation».
1	Punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	also	also	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	use	use	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
8	these	this	DET	DT	Number=Plur|PronType=Dem	9	det	_	_
9	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
11	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	Check	check	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
13	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	14	nmod:poss	_	_
14	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Punctuation | the way |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **use** | present | you | this marks |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mark=Patient |
| 3 | **check** *in a quote* | infinitive |  | your punctuation |  |  |  |  | vn assessment-34.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent punctuation=Theme |
| 4 | **punctuate** *in a quote* |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom punctuation «event transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Remember your punctuation: capital letter at the start, full stop at the end.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x1:1
# text = Remember your punctuation: capital letter at the start, full stop at the end.
1	Remember	remember	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	6	punct	_	_
5	capital	capital	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	appos	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	start	start	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	full	full	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	stop	stop	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
13	at	at	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	end	end	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **remember** | imperative | you *not said here* | your punctuation |  |  |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent punctuation=Theme |
| 2 | **punctuate** |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom punctuation «event transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A question mark is a punctuation mark.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x2:1
# text = A question mark is a punctuation mark.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	question	question	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	mark	mark	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	mark	mark	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a question mark | a punctuation mark |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Commas save lives: «Let's eat, Grandma!»

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x3:1
# text = Commas save lives: «Let's eat, Grandma!»
1	Commas	comma	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	save	save	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	lives	life	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	6	punct	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	Let	let	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	2	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	's	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	6	obj	_	_
8	eat	eat	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
10	Grandma	grandma	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	vocative	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **save** | present | Commas | lives |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **let** *in a quote* | infinitive |  | 's |  |  |  | Grandma *vocative* | tree rules |
| 3 | **eat** *in a quote* | infinitive | 's *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My teacher said my punctuation in speech was excellent.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x4:1
# text = My teacher said my punctuation in speech was excellent.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	teacher	teacher	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
8	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
9	excellent	excellent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | My teacher | my punctuation |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent punctuation=Topic |
| 2 | **is** | past | speech |  |  |  |  | excellent *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **punctuate** |  | my |  |  |  |  |  | nom punctuation «event transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Use speech marks around the words a character says.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x5:1
# text = Use speech marks around the words a character says.
1	Use	use	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	_
4	around	around	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obl	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	character	character	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
9	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | imperative | you *not said here* | speech marks |  | the words |  |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent mark=Patient |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | a character | the words *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent word=Topic |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The test had ten punctuation questions.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x6:1
# text = The test had ten punctuation questions.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	test	test	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	ten	ten	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	6	nummod	_	_
5	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	questions	question	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | past | the test | ten punctuation questions |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent question=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Without punctuation, the sentence was hard to read.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x7:1
# text = Without punctuation, the sentence was hard to read.
1	Without	without	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	punctuation	punctuation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	sentence	sentence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
6	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
7	hard	hard	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	read	read	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 | **is** | past | the sentence |  |  |  |  | without punctuation; hard *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **read** | to-infinitive | the sentence *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Americans call a full stop a «period».

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:punctuation:x8:1
# text = Americans call a full stop a «period».
1	Americans	American	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	call	call	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	full	full	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	stop	stop	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	period	period	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

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

<!-- 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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