---
title: touching — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «touching» in the school dictionary: As part of the verb, touching means putting your hand or another part on something, or being in contact: «Stop touching the paint». Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# touching

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** touching, you, Two things, paint, Safe touching, It · **What happens:** touch, mean, put, be, stop, make · **To what, where:** hand, something, contact, paint, adjective, you · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«touching» in the school dictionary: its 3 meanings for a pupil and its 9 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: [touching in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/touching.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
As part of the verb, touching means putting your hand or another part on something, or being in contact: «Stop touching the paint».

<!-- fold The tree, 23 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:m1:1
# text = As part of the verb, touching means putting your hand or another part on something, or being in contact: «Stop touching the paint».
1	As	as	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	verb	verb	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
7	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	csubj	_	_
8	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
9	putting	put	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	8	xcomp	_	_
10	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	hand	hand	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	_
12	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
13	another	another	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	14	det	_	_
14	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	conj	_	_
15	on	on	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	21	punct	_	_
18	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	21	cc	_	_
19	being	be	AUX	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	21	cop	_	_
20	in	in	ADP	IN	_	21	case	_	_
21	contact	contact	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	24	punct	_	_
23	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	24	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	Stop	stop	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	ccomp	_	_
25	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	24	xcomp	_	_
26	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	27	det	_	_
27	paint	paint	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	25	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
28	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	24	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **mean** | present | touching |  |  |  |  | as part of the verb | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **put** *not said to happen* | gerund | touching *not said here* | your hand or another part |  | something |  |  | vn put-9.1-2 «NP V PP.destination NP»: agent=Agent hand=Theme on something=Destination |
| 4 | **is** | gerund |  |  |  | contact |  |  | tree rules |
| 5 | **stop** *in a quote* | infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 6 | **touch** *in a quote* | gerund |  | the paint |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme paint=Co-Theme |

<!-- .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 -->
Touching (adjective) means making you feel sad or kind and warm inside: a touching story.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:m2:1
# text = Touching (adjective) means making you feel sad or kind and warm inside: a touching story.
1	Touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	csubj	_	_
2	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	adjective	adjective	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	3	punct	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	making	make	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	xcomp	_	_
7	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	6	obj	_	_
8	feel	feel	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	xcomp	_	_
9	sad	sad	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	xcomp	_	_
10	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	kind	kind	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	conj	_	_
12	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	warm	warm	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	conj	_	_
14	inside	inside	ADV	RB	_	13	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	18	punct	_	_
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	touching	touching	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	compound	_	_
18	story	story	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | gerund |  | adjective |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme adjective=Co-Theme |
| 2 | **mean** | present | Touching |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **make** *not said to happen* | gerund | Touching *not said here* | you |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **feel** *not said to happen* | infinitive | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | sad *property* | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Stimulus |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Two things that are touching have no space between them.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:m3:1
# text = Two things that are touching have no space between them.
1	Two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	2	nummod	_	_
2	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
3	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	5	nsubj	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	acl:relcl	_	_
6	have	have	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	8	det	_	_
8	space	space	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
9	between	between	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | present · progressive | Two things |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **have** | present | Two things | no space |  |  |  | between them *= they* | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent space=Patient |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stop touching your sister's things.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x1:1
# text = Stop touching your sister's things.
1	Stop	stop	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	1	xcomp	_	_
3	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	sister	sister	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	's	PART	POS	_	4	case	_	_
6	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stop** | imperative | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **touch** | gerund | you *not said here* | your sister's things |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme thing=Co-Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Please don't touch — the paint is wet.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x2:1
# text = Please don't touch — the paint is wet.
1	Please	please	INTJ	UH	_	4	discourse	_	_
2	do	do	AUX	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	touch	touch	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	—	-	PUNCT	:	_	9	punct	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	paint	paint	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
9	wet	wet	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **touch** | imperative · do-support | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present | the paint |  |  |  |  | wet *property* | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Safe touching includes hugs you want.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x3:1
# text = Safe touching includes hugs you want.
1	Safe	safe	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	touching	touching	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	includes	include	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	hugs	hug	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
5	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	want	want	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **include** | present | Safe touching | hugs |  |  |  |  | vn involve-107.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent hug=Theme |
| 2 | **want** | present | you | hugs *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot hug=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
You can say no to touching you don't like.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x4:1
# text = You can say no to touching you don't like.
1	You	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	3	obj	_	_
5	to	to	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	_
7	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
8	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
10	like	like	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | can | You | no |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent no=Topic |
| 2 | **touch** | gerund | You *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **not** **like** | present · do-support | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It was a touching story about a lost dog.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x5:1
# text = It was a touching story about a lost dog.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	amod	_	_
5	story	story	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	about	about	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	lost	lose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	9	amod	_	_
9	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is a** | past | It | a touching story |  |  |  | about a lost dog | tree rules |
| 3 | **lose** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The two circles are touching at one point.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x6:1
# text = The two circles are touching at one point.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
3	circles	circle	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	8	nummod	_	_
8	point	point	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | present · progressive | the two circles |  |  | one point |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
No touching the exhibits in the museum.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x7:1
# text = No touching the exhibits in the museum.
1	No	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	2	det	_	_
2	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	exhibits	exhibit	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	museum	museum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **touch** | gerund |  | the exhibits |  | the museum |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme exhibit=Co-Theme |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The balloon burst when it was touching the heater.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x8:1
# text = The balloon burst when it was touching the heater.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	balloon	balloon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	burst	burst	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	7	mark	_	_
5	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
6	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	heater	heater	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **burst** | past | the balloon |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **touch** | past · progressive | balloon | the heater |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme heater=Co-Theme |

## Example 9 {#x9}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
‘Yet what she says sounds very sad and touching.’

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:touching:x9:1
# text = ‘Yet what she says sounds very sad and touching.’
1	‘	'	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Yet	yet	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	5	obj	_	_
4	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
5	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	sounds	sound	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	_
7	very	very	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	sad	sad	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	ccomp	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	touching	touch	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	’	'	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | she | sounds |  |  |  |  | vn pronounce-29.3.1 «NP V NP NP»: agent=Agent what=Theme sound=Manner |
| 2 | **touch** | gerund | she *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V»: agent=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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