---
title: shortfall — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «shortfall» in the school dictionary: An amount by which something is less than what is needed or expected: a shortfall of £50. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shortfall/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/) / [school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/) / [S](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/) / shortfall

# shortfall

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** amount, something, school, We, shortfall, charity · **What happens:** be, need, expect, amount, have, cause · **To what, where:** shortfall, 30 chairs, 24, drought, donations

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
An amount by which something is less than what is needed or expected: a shortfall of £50.

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:m1:1
# text = An amount by which something is less than what is needed or expected: a shortfall of £50.
1	An	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	amount	amount	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	by	by	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	which	which	DET	WDT	PronType=Int	5	det	_	_
5	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	nmod	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
7	less	less	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
8	than	than	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	7	nmod	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	aux:pass	_	_
11	needed	need	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	9	acl:relcl	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	expected	expect	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	11	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	16	punct	_	_
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
17	of	of	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
18	£	£	SYM	$	_	16	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	50	50	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	18	nummod	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | a amount by something |  |  |  |  | a shortfall *obl*; less *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **need** | present · passive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF» |
| 3 | **expect** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn conjecture-29.5-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **amount** |  | something |  |  |  |  |  | nom amount «possession transitive»: by=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.

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The school has a shortfall of £500 for the new playground.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x1:1
# text = The school has a shortfall of £500 for the new playground.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	£	£	SYM	$	_	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	500	500	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
9	for	for	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	playground	playground	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We needed 30 chairs but had 24 — a shortfall of 6.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x2:1
# text = We needed 30 chairs but had 24 — a shortfall of 6.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	needed	need	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	30	30	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	chairs	chair	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
7	24	24	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	6	obj	_	_
8	—	-	PUNCT	:	_	10	punct	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	appos	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	6	6	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	10	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **need** | past | We | 30 chairs |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot chair=Theme |
| 2 | **have** | past | We *not said here* | 24 |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent 24=Patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A shortfall in rain caused a drought.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x3:1
# text = A shortfall in rain caused a drought.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	in	in	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	caused	cause	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	drought	drought	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cause** | past | a shortfall in rain | a drought |  |  |  |  | vn engender-27.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition drought=Patient |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The charity had a shortfall in donations this year.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x4:1
# text = The charity had a shortfall in donations this year.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	charity	charity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	donations	donation	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
8	this	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	9	det	_	_
9	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The hospital is facing a shortfall of nurses.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x5:1
# text = The hospital is facing a shortfall of nurses.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	hospital	hospital	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	facing	face	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	nurses	nurse	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **face** | present · progressive | the hospital | a shortfall of nurses |  |  |  |  | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme shortfall=Destination |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She covered the shortfall with her pocket money.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:shortfall:x6:1
# text = She covered the shortfall with her pocket money.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	covered	cover	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	shortfall	shortfall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
7	pocket	pocket	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	money	money	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cover** | past | She | the shortfall |  |  |  | with her pocket money | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent shortfall=Destination with money=Theme |

<!-- 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 -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [shorter](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shorter/)
- next →: [shortlist](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shortlist/)
- ↑ back to [S in school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/)