---
title: servant — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «servant» in the school dictionary: A person who is paid to work in someone else's home, doing jobs like cooking, cleaning and serving food, especially in the past. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# servant

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** person, castle, servant, aunt, Firefighters, 18 servants · **What happens:** pay, work, do, serve, use, have · **To what, where:** person, jobs, food, past, others, end

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A person who is paid to work in someone else's home, doing jobs like cooking, cleaning and serving food, especially in the past.

<!-- fold The tree, 24 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:m1:1
# text = A person who is paid to work in someone else's home, doing jobs like cooking, cleaning and serving food, especially in the past.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	5	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux:pass	_	_
5	paid	pay	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl:relcl	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
7	work	work	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	xcomp	_	_
8	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
9	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	12	nmod:poss	_	_
10	else	else	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	's	's	PART	POS	_	9	case	_	_
12	home	home	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
14	doing	do	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	7	advcl	_	_
15	jobs	job	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obj	_	_
16	like	like	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
17	cooking	cooking	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	19	punct	_	_
19	cleaning	cleaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	_
20	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	21	cc	_	_
21	serving	serve	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	14	conj	_	_
22	food	food	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	27	punct	_	_
24	especially	especially	ADV	RB	_	27	advmod	_	_
25	in	in	ADP	IN	_	27	case	_	_
26	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	27	det	_	_
27	past	past	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pay** | present · passive |  | a person |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **work** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | in someone's home | vn employment-95.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent in home=Theme |
| 3 | **do** | gerund |  | jobs |  |  |  | like cooking and cleaning | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent job=Eventuality |
| 4 | **serve** | gerund |  | food |  | the past |  |  | vn fit-54.3 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent food=Value in past=Location |

<!-- .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 person who works for and serves others: a public servant (a government worker), a civil servant.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:m2:1
# text = A person who works for and serves others: a public servant (a government worker), a civil servant.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	4	nsubj	_	_
4	works	work	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	acl:relcl	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	4	obl	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
7	serves	serve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	others	other	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	public	public	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	parataxis	_	_
13	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
15	government	government	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	compound	_	_
16	worker	worker	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	21	punct	_	_
19	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	21	det	_	_
20	civil	civil	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	21	amod	_	_
21	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **work** | present | a person |  |  |  |  |  | vn employment-95.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **serve** | present | a person | others |  |  |  |  | vn masquerade-29.6-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent other=Attribute |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Used politely at the end of old letters: «Your humble servant».

<!-- fold The tree, 11 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:m3:1
# text = Used politely at the end of old letters: «Your humble servant».
1	Used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
2	politely	politely	ADV	RB	_	1	advmod	_	_
3	at	at	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	end	end	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	letters	letter	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	13	punct	_	_
10	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	Your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	13	nmod:poss	_	_
12	humble	humble	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | participle |  |  |  |  | at the end of old letters | politely *property* | vn eat-39.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The castle had many servants.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x1:1
# text = The castle had many servants.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	castle	castle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	servants	servant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The servant brought the king his dinner.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x2:1
# text = The servant brought the king his dinner.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	brought	bring	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	king	king	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	dinner	dinner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bring** | past | the servant | servant's dinner | the king |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3-1 «NP V NP NP»: agent=Agent king=Destination dinner=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My aunt is a civil servant.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x3:1
# text = My aunt is a civil servant.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	aunt	aunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	civil	civil	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Firefighters are public servants.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x4:1
# text = Firefighters are public servants.
1	Firefighters	firefighter	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	public	public	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	servants	servant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The 18 servants worked in 3 groups of 6.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x5:1
# text = The 18 servants worked in 3 groups of 6.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	18	18	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
3	servants	servant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	worked	work	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	3	3	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
7	groups	group	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	6	6	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **work** | past | the 18 servants |  |  |  |  | in 3 groups of 6 | vn employment-95.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent in group=Theme |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In the story, the servant turned out to be a princess.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x6:1
# text = In the story, the servant turned out to be a princess.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	story	story	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	servant	servant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	turned	turn	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	out	out	ADP	RP	_	7	compound:prt	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	12	mark	_	_
10	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	12	cop	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	princess	princess	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **turn out** | past | the servant |  |  | the story |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in story=Location |
| 2 | **is a** | to-infinitive | the servant *not said here* | a princess |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We are no more than servants.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:servant:x7:1
# text = We are no more than servants.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	no	no	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	more	more	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
5	than	than	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	servants	servant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is** | present | We |  |  |  |  | than servants; more *property* | tree rules |

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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.

<!-- /div -->

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