---
title: striving — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «striving» in the school dictionary: Striving means trying very hard for a long time to get or reach something: «She is striving to improve». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# striving

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** She, effort, person, school motto, team, they · **What happens:** strive, mean, try, get, reach, improve · **To what, where:** something, effort, things, patience, times tables, South Pole · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«striving» in the school dictionary: its 2 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: [striving in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/striving.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Striving means trying very hard for a long time to get or reach something: «She is striving to improve».

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:m1:1
# text = Striving means trying very hard for a long time to get or reach something: «She is striving to improve».
1	Striving	strive	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	trying	try	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	xcomp	_	_
4	very	very	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	hard	hard	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	3	advmod	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
10	to	to	PART	TO	_	11	mark	_	_
11	get	get	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	advcl	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	reach	reach	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	conj	_	_
14	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	13	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	19	punct	_	_
16	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	19	nsubj	_	_
18	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	aux	_	_
19	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	parataxis	_	_
20	to	to	PART	TO	_	21	mark	_	_
21	improve	improve	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	19	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	19	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **try** *not said to happen* | gerund |  |  |  |  | time | hard *property* | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |
| 4 | **get** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer |
| 5 | **reach** | infinitive |  | something |  |  |  |  | vn body\_motion-49.2-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Agent something=Theme |
| 6 | **strive** *in a quote* | present · progressive | She |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 7 | **improve** *in a quote* | to-infinitive | She *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |

<!-- .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 -->
As a noun, striving is the effort of trying hard, or the things a person tries hard for.

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:m2:1
# text = As a noun, striving is the effort of trying hard, or the things a person tries hard for.
1	As	as	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	noun	noun	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
5	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	nsubj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	effort	effort	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
9	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	10	mark	_	_
10	trying	try	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	acl	_	_
11	hard	hard	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	10	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
13	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	conj	_	_
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	person	person	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	nsubj	_	_
18	tries	try	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	15	acl:relcl	_	_
19	hard	hard	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	xcomp	_	_
20	for	for	ADP	IN	_	19	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is a** | present |  | the effort or the things |  |  |  | as a noun | tree rules |
| 3 | **try** | gerund | the effort or the things *not said here* |  |  |  |  | hard *property* | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |
| 4 | **try** | present | a person | the things *not said here* |  |  |  | hard *property* | vn try-61.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent thing=Eventuality |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Our school motto is «Striving for excellence».

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x1:1
# text = Our school motto is «Striving for excellence».
1	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
2	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	motto	motto	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	Striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
7	for	for	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	excellence	excellence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** *in a quote* | present · progressive | Our school motto |  |  |  |  | for excellence | tree rules |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She is always striving to beat her best time.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x2:1
# text = She is always striving to beat her best time.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	4	advmod	_	_
4	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	beat	beat	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	xcomp	_	_
7	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
8	best	good	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	9	amod	_	_
9	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | present · progressive | She |  |  |  |  | always *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **beat** | to-infinitive | She *not said here* |  |  |  | time |  | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The team kept striving even when they were losing.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x3:1
# text = The team kept striving even when they were losing.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	team	team	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	kept	keep	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	3	xcomp	_	_
5	even	even	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
6	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	9	advmod	_	_
7	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
8	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
9	losing	lose	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	4	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **keep** | past | the team |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **strive** | gerund | the team *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **lose** | past · progressive | they |  |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Striving for a goal takes patience.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x4:1
# text = Striving for a goal takes patience.
1	Striving	strive	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	csubj	_	_
2	for	for	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	goal	goal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
5	takes	take	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	patience	patience	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  | for a goal | tree rules |
| 2 | **take** | present | Striving | patience |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent patience=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He is striving to learn his times tables by Friday.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x5:1
# text = He is striving to learn his times tables by Friday.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	learn	learn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
7	times	time	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	compound	_	_
8	tables	table	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	_
9	by	by	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	Friday	Friday	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | present · progressive | He |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **learn** | to-infinitive | He *not said here* | his times tables |  |  | friday |  | vn learn-14-2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent table=Topic |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The explorers were striving to reach the South Pole.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x6:1
# text = The explorers were striving to reach the South Pole.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	explorers	explorer	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	reach	reach	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	advcl	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	South	South	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	Pole	Pole	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **strive** | past · progressive | the explorers |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **reach** | to-infinitive | the explorers *not said here* | the South Pole |  |  |  |  | vn body\_motion-49.2-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Agent pole=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
All that striving paid off when she won the prize.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x7:1
# text = All that striving paid off when she won the prize.
1	All	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	that	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	paid	pay	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	off	off	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	8	mark	_	_
7	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
8	won	win	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	prize	prize	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 | **strive** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pay off** | participle · passive |  | All |  |  |  |  | vn pay-68-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Asset |
| 3 | **win** | past | she | the prize |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent prize=Eventuality |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He said he was striving after truth, and was considered by his aunt "a model and an example."

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:striving:x8:1
# text = He said he was striving after truth, and was considered by his aunt "a model and an example."
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
4	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	striving	strive	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	ccomp	_	_
6	after	after	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	truth	truth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
10	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	11	aux:pass	_	_
11	considered	consider	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	conj	_	_
12	by	by	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	14	nmod:poss	_	_
14	aunt	aunt	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obl	_	_
15	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	17	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	model	model	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	appos	_	_
18	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
19	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
20	example	example	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | He |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **strive** | past · progressive | he |  |  |  | after truth |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **consider** | past · passive | his aunt and a example |  |  |  |  |  | vn consider-29.9-1-1 «NP V whether/if S»: agent=Agent |

<!-- 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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