---
title: swan — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «swan» in the school dictionary: A swan is a large water bird, usually white, with a long curved neck. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# swan

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** swan, others, Two white swans, Black swans, you, ugly duckling · **What happens:** be, curve, swan, work, glide, call · **To what, where:** large water bird, relaxed carefree way, lake, baby swan, Australia, swans bread · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A swan is a large water bird, usually white, with a long curved neck.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:m1:1
# text = A swan is a large water bird, usually white, with a long curved neck.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	swan	swan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
5	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
9	usually	usually	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
10	white	white	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
12	with	with	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
14	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	_
15	curved	curve	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	16	amod	_	_
16	neck	neck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a swan | a large water bird |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **curve** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn knead-26.5 «NP.material V PP.product»: agent=Material |

<!-- .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}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: informal, UK — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To swan around or off is to go somewhere in a relaxed, carefree way, often while others are working.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:m2:1
# text = To swan around or off is to go somewhere in a relaxed, carefree way, often while others are working.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	swan	swan	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	advcl	_	_
3	around	around	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
4	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	off	off	ADV	RB	_	3	conj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	go	go	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
9	somewhere	somewhere	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	8	advmod	_	_
10	in	in	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
12	relaxed	relaxed	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
14	carefree	carefree	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	way	way	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	21	punct	_	_
17	often	often	ADV	RB	_	21	advmod	_	_
18	while	while	SCONJ	IN	_	21	mark	_	_
19	others	other	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	21	nsubj	_	_
20	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	21	aux	_	_
21	working	work	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	8	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swan** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | around *property* | vn run-51.3.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  | a relaxed carefree way |  | go, somewhere *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **work** | present · progressive | others |  |  |  |  | often *property* | vn employment-95.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Two white swans glided across the lake.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x1:1
# text = Two white swans glided across the lake.
1	Two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
2	white	white	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	swans	swan	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	glided	glide	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	across	across	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	lake	lake	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 | **glide** | past | Two white swans |  |  | the lake |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme across lake=Trajectory |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A baby swan is called a cygnet.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x2:1
# text = A baby swan is called a cygnet.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	baby	baby	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	swan	swan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux:pass	_	_
5	called	call	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	cygnet	cygnet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **call** | present · passive |  | a baby swan |  |  |  |  | vn initiate\_communication-37.4.2-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: subject=Recipient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Black swans live in Australia.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x3:1
# text = Black swans live in Australia.
1	Black	black	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	swans	swan	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	live	live	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	Australia	Australia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | present | Black swans |  |  | Australia |  |  | vn lodge-46 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in australia=Location |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Don't feed swans bread; give them peas or seeds.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x4:1
# text = Don't feed swans bread; give them peas or seeds.
1	Do	do	AUX	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	3	advmod	_	_
3	feed	feed	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	swans	swan	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	compound	_	_
5	bread	bread	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	7	punct	_	_
7	give	give	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
8	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	iobj	_	_
9	peas	pea	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	_
10	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	seeds	seed	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **feed** | imperative · do-support | you *not said here* | swans bread |  |  |  |  | vn feeding-39.7 «NP V NP PP.recipient»: agent=Agent bread=Theme |
| 2 | **give** | infinitive | you *not said here* | peas or seeds | them *= they* |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent they=Recipient pea=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The ugly duckling grew up to be a beautiful swan.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x5:1
# text = The ugly duckling grew up to be a beautiful swan.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	ugly	ugly	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	duckling	duckling	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	grew	grow	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	up	up	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
7	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	cop	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	beautiful	beautiful	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	swan	swan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grow up** | past | the ugly duckling |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is a** | to-infinitive | the ugly duckling *not said here* | a beautiful swan |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Swans can be fierce if you go near their nest.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x6:1
# text = Swans can be fierce if you go near their nest.
1	Swans	swan	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	cop	_	_
4	fierce	fierce	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
6	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	go	go	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
8	near	near	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	nest	nest	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | can | Swans |  |  |  |  | fierce *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **go** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | you |  |  | Swans's nest |  |  | vn occur-48.3-2 «NP V PP»: agent=Theme near nest=Location |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He swanned off to the beach while we cleaned up.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x7:1
# text = He swanned off to the beach while we cleaned up.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	swanned	swan	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	off	off	ADP	RP	_	2	compound:prt	_	_
4	to	to	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	beach	beach	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	while	while	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
8	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
9	cleaned	clean	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	parataxis	_	_
10	up	up	ADP	RP	_	9	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swan off** | past | He |  |  | the beach |  |  | vn run-51.3.2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme to beach=Destination |
| 2 | **clean up** | past | we |  |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She swans around as if she owns the place.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swan:x8:1
# text = She swans around as if she owns the place.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	swans	swan	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	around	around	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
4	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
5	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
6	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	owns	own	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	advcl	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	place	place	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 | **swan around** | present | She |  |  |  |  | around *property* | vn run-51.3.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **own** | present | she | the place |  |  |  |  | vn own-100.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot place=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 -->

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