---
title: rather — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «rather» in the school dictionary: Rather means quite or a little, like «rather cold». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# rather

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Rather, I, It, you, She, He · **What happens:** mean, prefer, walk, use, correct, say · **To what, where:** yourself, something, coat, pizza, bus, bit · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«rather» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings for a pupil and its 9 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: [rather in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/rather.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Rather means quite or a little, like «rather cold».

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:m1:1
# text = Rather means quite or a little, like «rather cold».
1	Rather	rather	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	quite	quite	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	like	like	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
11	cold	cold	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Rather |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |

<!-- .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 -->
«Would rather» means would prefer: «I'd rather walk».

<!-- fold The tree, 9 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:m2:1
# text = «Would rather» means would prefer: «I'd rather walk».
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	3	punct	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	acl:relcl	_	_
6	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	prefer	prefer	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	13	punct	_	_
9	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	13	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	13	aux	_	_
12	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	13	advmod	_	_
13	walk	walk	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **prefer** | would |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn admire-31.2 «NP V that S»: agent=Experiencer clause=Stimulus |
| 3 | **walk** *in a quote* | would | I |  |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Rather than» means instead of.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:m3:1
# text = «Rather than» means instead of.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Rather	rather	ADV	RB	ExtPos=CCONJ	5	advmod	_	_
3	than	than	ADP	IN	_	2	fixed	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	instead	instead	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	fixed	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  | instead *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Or rather» is used to correct yourself and say something more exactly.

<!-- fold The tree, 12 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:m4:1
# text = «Or rather» is used to correct yourself and say something more exactly.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	3	punct	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux:pass	_	_
6	used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	correct	correct	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	_
9	yourself	yourself	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Sing|Person=2|PronType=Prs|Reflex=Yes	8	obj	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	conj	_	_
12	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	11	obj	_	_
13	more	more	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	14	advmod	_	_
14	exactly	exactly	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | present · passive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn use-105.1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **correct** *speech: disagree* | to-infinitive |  | yourself |  |  |  |  | vn remedy-45.7 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent yourself=Patient |
| 3 | **say** *speech: assert* | infinitive |  | something |  |  |  | exactly *property* | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent something=Topic |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's rather cold today, so take a coat.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x1:1
# text = It's rather cold today, so take a coat.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	cold	cold	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	today	today	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	so	so	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	take	take	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	4	parataxis	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	coat	coat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  | today | cold *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **take** | infinitive |  | a coat |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent coat=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I'd rather have pizza than pasta.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x2:1
# text = I'd rather have pizza than pasta.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	have	have	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	pizza	pizza	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	than	than	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	pasta	pasta	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | would | I | pizza |  |  |  | than pasta | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent pizza=Patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Would you rather swim or cycle?

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x3:1
# text = Would you rather swim or cycle?
1	Would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
2	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	swim	swim	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	cycle	cycle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swim** | would | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She chose to walk rather than take the bus.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x4:1
# text = She chose to walk rather than take the bus.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	chose	choose	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	walk	walk	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
5	rather	rather	ADV	RB	ExtPos=CCONJ	7	cc	_	_
6	than	than	ADP	IN	_	5	fixed	_	_
7	take	take	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	conj	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **choose** | past | She |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **walk** | to-infinitive | She *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **take** | infinitive | She *not said here* | the bus |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bus=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I'd rather not talk about it.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x5:1
# text = I'd rather not talk about it.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
4	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	talk	talk	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	about	about	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **talk** | would | I |  |  |  |  | about it | vn talk-37.5 «NP V PP.topic»: agent=Agent about it=Topic |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He was rather tired after the match.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x6:1
# text = He was rather tired after the match.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	tired	tired	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	after	after	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	match	match	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | He |  |  |  | after the match | tired *property* | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The test was rather easy.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x7:1
# text = The test was rather easy.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	test	test	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	easy	easy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | the test |  |  |  |  | easy *property* | tree rules |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We left at six, or rather a bit after six.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x8:1
# text = We left at six, or rather a bit after six.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	left	leave	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	at	at	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	six	six	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
6	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
7	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	bit	bit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
10	after	after	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	six	six	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leave** | past | We | a bit |  | six | after six |  | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent at six=Location |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
‘Happy!’ cried he; ‘say rather unhappy.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:rather:x9:1
# text = ‘Happy!’ cried he; ‘say rather unhappy.
1	‘	'	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Happy	happy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	’	'	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
5	cried	cry	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
8	‘	'	PUNCT	``	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	conj	_	_
10	rather	rather	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
11	unhappy	unhappy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cry** *speech: express* | past | he |  |  |  |  |  | vn manner\_speaking-37.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | infinitive | he *not said here* | unhappy |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent unhappy=Topic |

<!-- 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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