---
title: speech — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «speech» in the school dictionary: Speech is the ability to speak, or spoken language: «Babies learn speech slowly.». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# speech

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Speech, Babies, direct speech, someone, She, you · **What happens:** be, speak, learn, give, say, put · **To what, where:** ability, speech, talk, audience, exact words, grammar · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«speech» in the school dictionary: its 3 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: [speech in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/speech.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Speech is the ability to speak, or spoken language: «Babies learn speech slowly.».

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:m1:1
# text = Speech is the ability to speak, or spoken language: «Babies learn speech slowly.».
1	Speech	speech	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	ability	ability	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	speak	speak	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	acl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
9	spoken	speak	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	10	amod	_	_
10	language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	14	punct	_	_
12	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	Babies	baby	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	nsubj	_	_
14	learn	learn	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	parataxis	_	_
15	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obj	_	_
16	slowly	slowly	ADV	RB	_	14	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Speech | the ability or spoken language |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **speak** *speech: other* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **speak** *speech: other* | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **learn** *in a quote* | present | Babies | speech |  |  |  | slowly *property* | vn learn-14-2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent speech=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 -->
A speech is a talk given to an audience, like at assembly or a wedding.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:m2:1
# text = A speech is a talk given to an audience, like at assembly or a wedding.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	speech	speech	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	talk	talk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	given	give	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	acl	_	_
7	to	to	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	audience	audience	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
11	like	like	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	at	at	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
13	assembly	assembly	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
14	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	16	cc	_	_
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	wedding	wedding	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a speech | a talk |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **give** | participle |  | a talk *not said here* | a audience |  |  | like assembly or a wedding | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V PP.recipient»: agent=Agent to audience=Recipient |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In grammar, «direct speech» is the exact words someone said, inside speech marks (quotation marks).

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:m3:1
# text = In grammar, «direct speech» is the exact words someone said, inside speech marks (quotation marks).
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	grammar	grammar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	direct	direct	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	exact	exact	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
12	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	13	nsubj	_	_
13	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	11	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
15	inside	inside	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
16	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	compound	_	_
17	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	obj	_	_
18	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	20	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	quotation	quotation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	compound	_	_
20	marks	mark	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	17	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	20	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | direct speech | the exact words |  | grammar |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | someone | speech marks |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent mark=Topic |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She gave a speech in assembly.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x1:1
# text = She gave a speech in assembly.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	gave	give	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	assembly	assembly	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | past | She | a speech |  | assembly |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent speech=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

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

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x2:1
# text = Put speech marks around the words the character says.
1	Put	put	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	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|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 | **put** | imperative | you *not said here* | speech marks |  | the words |  |  | vn put-9.1-2 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent mark=Theme around word=Destination |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | the character | the words *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent word=Topic |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The winner made a short speech.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x3:1
# text = The winner made a short speech.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	winner	winner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | the winner | a short speech |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset speech=Product |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Freedom of speech means people can say what they think.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x4:1
# text = Freedom of speech means people can say what they think.
1	Freedom	freedom	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	of	of	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
3	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nmod	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
6	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	ccomp	_	_
8	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	10	obj	_	_
9	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	think	think	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Freedom of speech |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | can | people |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **think** *speech: other* | present | people |  |  |  |  |  | vn wish-62 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot what=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nouns and verbs are parts of speech.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x5:1
# text = Nouns and verbs are parts of speech.
1	Nouns	noun	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
2	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	3	cc	_	_
3	verbs	verb	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	conj	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	parts	part	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Nouns and verbs | parts |  |  |  | of speech | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A speech therapist helps children with their speech.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x6:1
# text = A speech therapist helps children with their speech.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	therapist	therapist	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	helps	help	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	children	child	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **help** | present | a speech therapist |  | children |  |  | with children's speech | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent child=Beneficiary with speech=Theme |
| 2 | **speak** |  | children *= child* |  |  |  |  |  | nom speech «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The comic has a speech bubble above the dog.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x7:1
# text = The comic has a speech bubble above the dog.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	comic	comic	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	6	det	_	_
5	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	bubble	bubble	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	above	above	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dorothy listened to this speech with wonder.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:speech:x8:1
# text = Dorothy listened to this speech with wonder.
1	Dorothy	Dorothy	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	listened	listen	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	this	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	5	det	_	_
5	speech	speech	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	wonder	wonder	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **listen** | past | Dorothy |  |  |  |  | to this speech with wonder | vn peer-30.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent to speech=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 -->
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