---
title: quack — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «quack» in the school dictionary: A quack is the loud, harsh sound a duck makes; to quack means to make that sound. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# quack

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** quack, duck, person, ducks, we, you · **What happens:** be, make, mean, pretend, have, sell · **To what, where:** loud harsh sound, sound, person, doctor, medical skill, fake cures

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A quack is the loud, harsh sound a duck makes; to quack means to make that sound.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:m1:1
# text = A quack is the loud, harsh sound a duck makes; to quack means to make that sound.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
5	loud	loud	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
7	harsh	harsh	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	duck	duck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
11	makes	make	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	15	punct	_	_
13	to	to	PART	TO	_	14	mark	_	_
14	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	nsubj	_	_
15	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	conj	_	_
16	to	to	PART	TO	_	17	mark	_	_
17	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	15	xcomp	_	_
18	that	that	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	19	det	_	_
19	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a quack | the loud harsh sound |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **make** | present | a duck |  |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **mean** | present | quack |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 4 | **make** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | quack *not said here* | that sound |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset sound=Product |

<!-- .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 -->
A quack is a person who pretends to be a doctor or to have medical skill and sells fake cures.

<!-- fold The tree, 20 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:m2:1
# text = A quack is a person who pretends to be a doctor or to have medical skill and sells fake cures.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	quack	quack	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	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	7	nsubj	_	_
7	pretends	pretend	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	11	mark	_	_
9	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	cop	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	doctor	doctor	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	xcomp	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
13	to	to	PART	TO	_	14	mark	_	_
14	have	have	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	conj	_	_
15	medical	medical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	_
16	skill	skill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obj	_	_
17	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	sells	sell	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	conj	_	_
19	fake	fake	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
20	cures	cure	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	18	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a quack | a person |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pretend** | present | a person |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **is a** | to-infinitive | a person *not said here* | a doctor |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **have** | to-infinitive | a person *not said here* | medical skill |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent skill=Patient |
| 5 | **sell** | present | a person *not said here* | fake cures |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent cure=Theme |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: UK, Australia, slang — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«The quack» can be a joking word for a real doctor.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:m3:1
# text = «The quack» can be a joking word for a real doctor.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	3	punct	_	_
5	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	cop	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	joking	joke	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	9	amod	_	_
9	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
10	for	for	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
12	real	real	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	doctor	doctor	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **joke** *speech: other* | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn chit\_chat-37.6 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is a** | can | the quack | a joking word |  |  |  | for a real doctor | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The ducks quacked loudly when we brought bread.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x1:1
# text = The ducks quacked loudly when we brought bread.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	ducks	duck	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	quacked	quack	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	loudly	loudly	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
5	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
6	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	brought	bring	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
8	bread	bread	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **quack** | past | the ducks |  |  |  |  | loudly *property* | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **bring** | past | we | bread |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3-1 «NP V NP together»: agent=Agent bread=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Quack, quack!» went Mother Duck.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x2:1
# text = «Quack, quack!» went Mother Duck.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
4	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
7	went	go	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	Mother	mother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	Duck	duck	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 | **go** | past | Quack and quack | Mother Duck |  |  |  |  | vn meander-47.7 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location duck=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The quack sold bottles of coloured water as medicine.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x3:1
# text = The quack sold bottles of coloured water as medicine.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	sold	sell	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	bottles	bottle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	coloured	coloured	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	as	as	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	medicine	medicine	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sell** | past | the quack | bottles of coloured water |  |  |  | as medicine | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bottle=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Don't trust quack cures you see online.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x4:1
# text = Don't trust quack cures you see online.
1	Do	do	AUX	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	3	advmod	_	_
3	trust	trust	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	cures	cure	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	see	see	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
8	online	online	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **trust** | imperative · do-support | you *not said here* | quack cures |  |  |  |  | vn conjecture-29.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent cure=Theme |
| 2 | **see** | present | you | quack cures *not said here* |  |  |  | online *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer cure=Stimulus |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I'm off to see the quack about my cough. (UK, slang)

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* I'm off to see the quack about my cough.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x5:1
# text = I'm off to see the quack about my cough.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'm	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	off	off	ADV	RB	_	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	see	see	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	advcl	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	about	about	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	cough	cough	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | I |  |  |  |  | off *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **see** | to-infinitive | I *not said here* | the quack |  |  |  | about my cough | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer quack=Stimulus |
| 3 | **cough** |  | my |  |  |  |  |  | nom cough «state transitive»: poss=agent |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* (UK, slang)

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x5:2
# text = (UK, slang)
1	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	UK	UK	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
4	slang	slang	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x6:1
# text = If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck.
1	If	if	SCONJ	IN	_	3	mark	_	_
2	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	looks	look	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	17	advcl	_	_
4	like	like	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	duck	duck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	quacks	quack	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
9	like	like	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	duck	duck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
13	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	17	nsubj	_	_
14	probably	probably	ADV	RB	_	17	advmod	_	_
15	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	17	cop	_	_
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	duck	duck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	17	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **look** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | it |  |  |  |  | like a duck | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Stimulus |
| 2 | **quack** | present |  |  |  |  |  | like a duck | vn animal\_sounds-38 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is a** | present | duck | a duck |  |  |  | probably *property* | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Be wise and shun the quack.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:quack:x7:1
# text = Be wise and shun the quack.
1	Be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	cop	_	_
2	wise	wise	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
3	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
4	shun	shun	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	conj	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	quack	quack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | wise *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **shun** | infinitive | you *not said here* | the quack |  |  |  |  | vn avoid-52 «NP V NP.location»: agent=Agent quack=Location |

<!-- 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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