---
title: wether — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «wether» in the school dictionary: A wether is a male sheep (or goat) that has been castrated, so it cannot become a father; farmers keep wethers for wool or meat. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# wether

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** wether, farmers, farmer, ewe, ram, old shepherd · **What happens:** be, castrate, not become, keep, hang, lead · **To what, where:** male sheep, that, father, wethers, female sheep, male

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

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A wether is a male sheep (or goat) that has been castrated, so it cannot become a father; farmers keep wethers for wool or meat.

<!-- fold The tree, 26 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:m1:1
# text = A wether is a male sheep (or goat) that has been castrated, so it cannot become a father; farmers keep wethers for wool or meat.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	wether	wether	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	male	male	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	sheep	sheep	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	goat	goat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	9	punct	_	_
11	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	14	obj	_	_
12	has	have	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	aux	_	_
13	been	be	AUX	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	14	aux:pass	_	_
14	castrated	castrate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
16	so	so	ADV	RB	_	20	advmod	_	_
17	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	20	nsubj	_	_
18	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	20	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	20	advmod	_	_
20	become	become	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	advcl	_	_
21	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
22	father	father	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	25	punct	_	_
24	farmers	farmer	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	25	nsubj	_	_
25	keep	keep	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	conj	_	_
26	wethers	wether	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	25	obj	_	_
27	for	for	ADP	IN	_	28	case	_	_
28	wool	wool	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	25	obl	_	_
29	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	30	cc	_	_
30	meat	meat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	28	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a wether | a male sheep |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **castrate** | present · perfect · passive | a wether *not said here* | that |  |  |  |  | vn remedy-45.7 «NP V NP.patient»: that=Patient |
| 3 | **not** **become** | can | wether | a father |  |  |  |  | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient |
| 4 | **keep** | present | farmers | wethers |  |  |  | for wool or meat | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent wether=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.

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The farmer kept the wethers for their wool.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x1:1
# text = The farmer kept the wethers for their wool.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	farmer	farmer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	kept	keep	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	wethers	wether	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	8	nmod:poss	_	_
8	wool	wool	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **keep** | past | the farmer | the wethers |  |  |  | for wethers's wool | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent wether=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A ewe is a female sheep, a ram is a male, and a wether is a castrated male.

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x2:1
# text = A ewe is a female sheep, a ram is a male, and a wether is a castrated male.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	ewe	ewe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	female	female	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	sheep	sheep	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	ram	ram	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nsubj	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	male	male	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	20	punct	_	_
14	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	20	cc	_	_
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	wether	wether	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	nsubj	_	_
17	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	20	cop	_	_
18	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
19	castrated	castrate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	20	amod	_	_
20	male	male	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a ewe | a female sheep and a male and a castrated male |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is a** | present | a ram | a male |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **castrate** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn remedy-45.7 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **is a** | present | a wether | a castrated male |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The old shepherd hung a bell on the leading wether.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x3:1
# text = The old shepherd hung a bell on the leading wether.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	shepherd	shepherd	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	hung	hang	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	bell	bell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
7	on	on	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	leading	lead	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	10	amod	_	_
10	wether	wether	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hang** | past | the old shepherd | a bell |  | the leading wether |  |  | vn put\_spatial-9.2 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent bell=Theme on wether=Destination |
| 2 | **lead** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn result-27.2 «NP V PP»: agent=Precondition |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wethers are usually calmer than rams.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x4:1
# text = Wethers are usually calmer than rams.
1	Wethers	wether	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	usually	usually	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	calmer	calm	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
5	than	than	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	rams	ram	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Wethers |  |  |  |  | than rams; calm, usually *property* | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The wethers grazed on the hillside.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x5:1
# text = The wethers grazed on the hillside.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	wethers	wether	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	grazed	graze	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	hillside	hillside	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **graze** | past | the wethers |  |  |  |  | on the hillside | vn dine-39.5 «NP V PP.patient»: agent=Agent on hillside=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
This town is a bellwether: whoever wins here often wins the election.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wether:x6:1
# text = This town is a bellwether: whoever wins here often wins the election.
1	This	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	2	det	_	_
2	town	town	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	bellwether	bellwether	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	8	punct	_	_
7	whoever	whoever	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
8	wins	win	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	acl:relcl	_	_
9	here	here	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	8	advmod	_	_
10	often	often	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
11	wins	win	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	advcl	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	election	election	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | this town | a bellwether |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **win** | present | whoever |  |  | here |  |  | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **win** | present | whoever *not said here* | the election |  |  |  | often *property* | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent election=Eventuality |

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**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.

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