---
title: swirl — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «swirl» in the school dictionary: To swirl is to move round and round quickly in circles, like water going down a plughole. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# swirl

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** water, swirl, twisting, She, you · **What happens:** swirl, be, go down, turn round, circle, whip · **To what, where:** circles, plughole, something, paint, water, twisting

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To swirl is to move round and round quickly in circles, like water going down a plughole.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:m1:1
# text = To swirl is to move round and round quickly in circles, like water going down a plughole.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	swirl	swirl	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	csubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	move	move	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	round	round	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	round	round	ADV	RB	_	6	conj	_	_
9	quickly	quickly	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
10	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	circles	circle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
13	like	like	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	appos	_	_
15	going	go	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	14	acl	_	_
16	down	down	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
17	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
18	plughole	plughole	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  | circles |  | move, quickly, round *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **go down** | gerund | water *not said here* | a plughole |  |  |  |  | vn calibratable\_cos-45.6.1-1 «NP.patient V NP.extent PP.source PP.goal»: agent=Patient plughole=Extent |

<!-- .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 -->
To swirl something is to make it turn round, like swirling paint in water.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:m2:1
# text = To swirl something is to make it turn round, like swirling paint in water.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	swirl	swirl	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	csubj	_	_
3	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	obj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	obj	_	_
8	turn	turn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	_
9	round	round	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	like	like	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
12	swirling	swirl	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	8	advcl	_	_
13	paint	paint	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obj	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | to-infinitive |  | something |  |  |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location something=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | make *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **turn round** | infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | round *property* | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP.theme V»: agent=Theme |
| 4 | **swirl** | gerund |  | paint |  | water |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location paint=Theme |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A swirl is a twisting, circling shape or movement, like a swirl of cream.

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:m3:1
# text = A swirl is a twisting, circling shape or movement, like a swirl of cream.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	swirl	swirl	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	twisting	twisting	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
7	circling	circle	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	acl	_	_
8	shape	shape	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	movement	movement	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
12	like	like	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	swirl	swirl	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
15	of	of	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	cream	cream	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	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 swirl | a twisting |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **circle** | gerund | a twisting *not said here* | shape or movement |  |  |  | like a swirl of cream | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme shape=Co-Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Autumn leaves swirled in the wind.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x1:1
# text = Autumn leaves swirled in the wind.
1	Autumn	autumn	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	leaves	leaf	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
3	swirled	swirl	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	wind	wind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | participle |  | Autumn leaves *not said here* |  | the wind |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in wind=Location |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The water swirled down the plughole.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x2:1
# text = The water swirled down the plughole.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	swirled	swirl	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	down	down	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	plughole	plughole	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | participle |  | the water *not said here* |  | the plughole |  |  | vn coil-9.6 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme down plughole=Destination |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She swirled the paint in the water.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x3:1
# text = She swirled the paint in the water.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	swirled	swirl	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	paint	paint	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | past | She | the paint |  | the water |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location paint=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A swirl of whipped cream sat on top.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x4:1
# text = A swirl of whipped cream sat on top.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	swirl	swirl	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	whipped	whip	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	amod	_	_
5	cream	cream	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	sat	sit	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	on	on	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	top	top	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **whip** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn shake-22.3-1-1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **sit** | past | a swirl of whipped cream |  |  | top |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Agent on top=Location |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Mist swirled around the old castle.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x5:1
# text = Mist swirled around the old castle.
1	Mist	mist	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
2	swirled	swirl	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	acl	_	_
3	around	around	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	castle	castle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | participle |  | Mist *not said here* |  | the old castle |  |  | vn coil-9.6 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme around castle=Destination |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Snowflakes swirled outside the window.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x6:1
# text = Snowflakes swirled outside the window.
1	Snowflakes	snowflake	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
2	swirled	swirl	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	acl	_	_
3	outside	outside	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	window	window	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **swirl** | participle |  | Snowflakes *not said here* |  | the window |  |  | vn modes\_of\_being\_with\_motion-47.3 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme outside window=Location |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Draw a swirl that spirals into the middle.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x7:1
# text = Draw a swirl that spirals into the middle.
1	Draw	draw	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	swirl	swirl	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	5	nsubj	_	_
5	spirals	spiral	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	acl:relcl	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	middle	middle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **draw** | imperative | you *not said here* | a swirl |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent swirl=Theme |
| 2 | **spiral** | present | a swirl |  |  | the middle |  |  | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V PP.trajectory»: agent=Theme into middle=Trajectory |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
And now the water in the room stood up to the window and washed against the glass, and swirled around his feet on the table.

<!-- fold The tree, 25 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:swirl:x8:1
# text = And now the water in the room stood up to the window and washed against the glass, and swirled around his feet on the table.
1	And	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
2	now	now	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	8	advmod	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	room	room	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	stood	stand	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
9	up	up	ADP	RP	_	8	compound:prt	_	_
10	to	to	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	window	window	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
14	washed	wash	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	conj	_	_
15	against	against	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	glass	glass	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
19	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
20	swirled	swirl	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	conj	_	_
21	around	around	ADP	IN	_	23	case	_	_
22	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	23	nmod:poss	_	_
23	feet	foot	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	20	obl	_	_
24	on	on	ADP	IN	_	26	case	_	_
25	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	26	det	_	_
26	table	table	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stand up** | past | the water in the room |  |  |  | now | to the window | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **wash** | participle | the water in the room *not said here* |  |  |  |  | against the glass | vn floss-41.2.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **swirl** | participle | the water in the room *not said here* |  |  | water's feet |  | on the table | vn coil-9.6 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme around foot=Destination |

<!-- 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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