---
title: ventriloquism — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «ventriloquism» in the school dictionary: Ventriloquism is the skill of speaking without moving your lips, so the voice seems to come from somewhere else, usually a puppet or dummy on your knee. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# ventriloquism

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Ventriloquism, skill, voice, She, her, it · **What happens:** be, speak, move, seem, come, win · **To what, where:** skill, lips, puppet, knee, talent show, lots · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«ventriloquism» in the school dictionary: its meaning for a pupil and its 6 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: [ventriloquism in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/ventriloquism.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ventriloquism is the skill of speaking without moving your lips, so the voice seems to come from somewhere else, usually a puppet or dummy on your knee.

<!-- fold The tree, 27 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:m1:1
# text = Ventriloquism is the skill of speaking without moving your lips, so the voice seems to come from somewhere else, usually a puppet or dummy on your knee.
1	Ventriloquism	Ventriloquism	PROPN	NNP	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	skill	skill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	speaking	speak	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	without	without	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
8	moving	move	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	6	advcl	_	_
9	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	lips	lip	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	so	so	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	voice	voice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	nsubj	_	_
15	seems	seem	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	conj	_	_
16	to	to	PART	TO	_	17	mark	_	_
17	come	come	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	15	xcomp	_	_
18	from	from	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
19	somewhere	somewhere	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	17	advmod	_	_
20	else	else	ADV	RB	_	19	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	24	punct	_	_
22	usually	usually	ADV	RB	_	24	advmod	_	_
23	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	24	det	_	_
24	puppet	puppet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	obl	_	_
25	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	26	cc	_	_
26	dummy	dummy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	24	conj	_	_
27	on	on	ADP	IN	_	29	case	_	_
28	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	29	nmod:poss	_	_
29	knee	knee	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
30	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Ventriloquism | the skill |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **speak** *speech: other* | gerund | the skill *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **move** | gerund | the skill *not said here* | your lips |  |  |  |  | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V NP.theme»: agent=Agent lip=Theme |
| 4 | **seem** | present | the voice |  |  |  |  |  | vn seem-109-1-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Theme clause=Attribute |
| 5 | **come** | to-infinitive | the voice *not said here* | a puppet or dummy |  | your knee |  | somewhere *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme on knee=Location |

<!-- .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.

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
She won the talent show with her ventriloquism act.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x1:1
# text = She won the talent show with her ventriloquism act.
1	She	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	won	win	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	talent	talent	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	show	show	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	with	with	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
8	ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	act	act	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **win** | past | She | the talent show |  |  |  | with her ventriloquism act | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent show=Eventuality |
| 2 | **act** |  | her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom act «communication intransitive»: poss=agent |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ventriloquism takes lots of practice in front of a mirror.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x2:1
# text = Ventriloquism takes lots of practice in front of a mirror.
1	Ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	takes	take	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	lots	lot	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	practice	practice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	front	front	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	mirror	mirror	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | present | Ventriloquism | lots of practice |  | front of a mirror |  |  | vn fit-54.3 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent lot=Value in front=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In ventriloquism, sounds like b and p are the hardest to say without moving your lips.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x3:1
# text = In ventriloquism, sounds like b and p are the hardest to say without moving your lips.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	advcl	_	_
5	like	like	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	b	B	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	p	p	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
9	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	hardest	hard	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	0	root	_	_
12	to	to	PART	TO	_	13	mark	_	_
13	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	csubj	_	_
14	without	without	SCONJ	IN	_	15	mark	_	_
15	moving	move	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	13	advcl	_	_
16	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	17	nmod:poss	_	_
17	lips	lip	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	11	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present |  |  |  | ventriloquism |  | like b and p | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in ventriloquism=Location |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | hard *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **say** *speech: assert* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **move** | gerund |  | your lips |  |  |  |  | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V NP.theme»: agent=Agent lip=Theme |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The ventriloquism made it seem as if the dummy was singing.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x4:1
# text = The ventriloquism made it seem as if the dummy was singing.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
5	seem	seem	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
7	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	dummy	dummy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
10	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	11	aux	_	_
11	singing	sing	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	5	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | past | the ventriloquism |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **seem** | infinitive | it |  |  |  |  |  | vn seem-109-1-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **sing** *speech: express* | past · progressive | the dummy |  |  |  |  |  | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Long ago, ventriloquism was used to make people think spirits were speaking.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x5:1
# text = Long ago, ventriloquism was used to make people think spirits were speaking.
1	Long	long	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	2	advmod	_	_
2	ago	ago	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	2	punct	_	_
4	ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj:pass	_	_
5	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux:pass	_	_
6	used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	advcl	_	_
9	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obj	_	_
10	think	think	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	xcomp	_	_
11	spirits	spirit	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	nsubj	_	_
12	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	13	aux	_	_
13	speaking	speak	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	10	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **use** | past · passive |  | ventriloquism |  |  |  | ago *property* | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |
| 2 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | people |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **think** *speech: other* | infinitive | people *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn consider-29.9-2 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Theme |
| 4 | **speak** *speech: other* | past · progressive | spirits |  |  |  |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We watched a ventriloquism show at the seaside.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:ventriloquism:x6:1
# text = We watched a ventriloquism show at the seaside.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	watched	watch	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	ventriloquism	ventriloquism	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	show	show	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	seaside	seaside	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **watch** | past | We | a ventriloquism show |  | the seaside |  |  | vn assessment-34.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent show=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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