---
title: wu — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «wu» in the school dictionary: «Wǔ» means «five»: «wǔ» 五. It sounds like «woo» to an English ear. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# wu

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Wǔ, five, wú, Wu, Wu Chinese, group · **What happens:** mean, sound, woo, not have, be, speak · **To what, where:** five, dance, none, common Chinese family name, group, Chinese varieties · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«wu» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings 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: [wu in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/wu.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: Mandarin, pinyin — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Wǔ» means «five»: «wǔ» 五. It sounds like «woo» to an English ear.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* «Wǔ» means «five»: «wǔ» 五.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m1:1
# text = «Wǔ» means «five»: «wǔ» 五.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Wǔ	Wǔ	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	five	five	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	12	punct	_	_
9	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	wǔ	wǔ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	_
12	五	五	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Wǔ | five |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent five=Topic |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* It sounds like «woo» to an English ear.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m1:2
# text = It sounds like «woo» to an English ear.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	like	like	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	woo	woo	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
7	to	to	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	ear	ear	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present | five |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **woo** *in a quote* | infinitive | five *not said here* |  |  |  |  | to a English ear | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: Mandarin, pinyin — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Wǔ» can also mean «dance» or «noon» (wǔfàn, lunch), and «wú» can mean «not have, none».

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m2:1
# text = «Wǔ» can also mean «dance» or «noon» (wǔfàn, lunch), and «wú» can mean «not have, none».
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Wǔ	Wǔ	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
5	also	also	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
6	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
7	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	dance	dance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	_
10	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
11	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	noon	noon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	12	punct	_	_
14	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	wǔfàn	wǔfàn	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
17	lunch	lunch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	15	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	25	punct	_	_
20	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	25	cc	_	_
21	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	22	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	wú	wú	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	25	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	22	punct	_	_
24	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	25	aux	_	_
25	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	conj	_	_
26	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	28	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	28	advmod	_	_
28	have	have	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	25	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	30	punct	_	_
30	none	none	PRON	NN	PronType=Neg	28	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	28	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
32	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | can | Wǔ | dance or noon |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent dance=Topic |
| 2 | **mean** | can | wú |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **not** **have** *in a quote* | infinitive |  | none |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent none=Patient |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: a name — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wu is a common Chinese family name.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m3:1
# text = Wu is a common Chinese family name.
1	Wu	wu	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
4	common	common	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
5	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	family	family	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	name	name	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Wu | a common Chinese family name |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wu Chinese is a group of Chinese varieties spoken around Shanghai. It is not an English word.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Wu Chinese is a group of Chinese varieties spoken around Shanghai.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m4:1
# text = Wu Chinese is a group of Chinese varieties spoken around Shanghai.
1	Wu	Wu	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	Chinese	Chinese	PROPN	NNP	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	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	varieties	variety	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	_
9	spoken	speak	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	acl	_	_
10	around	around	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	Shanghai	Shanghai	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Wu Chinese | a group |  |  |  | of Chinese varieties | tree rules |
| 2 | **speak** *speech: other* | participle |  | Chinese varieties *not said here* |  | Shanghai |  |  | vn talk-37.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* It is not an English word.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:m4:2
# text = It is not an English word.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
4	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is a** | present | group | a English word |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In Mandarin, «wǔ» means five.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x1:1
# text = In Mandarin, «wǔ» means five.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	Mandarin	Mandarin	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	wǔ	wǔ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
7	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	five	five	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | wǔ | five |  |  |  | in Mandarin | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot five=Theme in mandarin=Attribute |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
We counted «yī, èr, sān, sì, wǔ» in our Chinese club.

<!-- fold The tree, 11 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x2:1
# text = We counted «yī, èr, sān, sì, wǔ» in our Chinese club.
1	We	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	counted	count	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	yī	yī	INTJ	UH	_	6	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
6	èr	èr	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
8	sān	sān	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
10	sì	sì	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
12	wǔ	wǔ	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
15	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	17	nmod:poss	_	_
16	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	club	club	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **count** | past | We | èr and sān and wǔ |  | our Chinese club |  |  | vn multiply-108 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent èr=Theme |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«Wǔfàn» means lunch in Mandarin.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x3:1
# text = «Wǔfàn» means lunch in Mandarin.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Wǔfàn	Wǔfàn	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	lunch	lunch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	Mandarin	Mandarin	PROPN	NNP	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 | **mean** | present | Wǔfàn | lunch |  |  |  | in Mandarin | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot lunch=Theme in mandarin=Attribute |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My classmate's surname is Wu.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x4:1
# text = My classmate's surname is Wu.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	classmate	classmate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	surname	surname	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
6	Wu	Wu	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | My classmate's surname | Wu |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
In Shanghai some people speak Wu Chinese at home.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x5:1
# text = In Shanghai some people speak Wu Chinese at home.
1	In	in	ADP	IN	_	2	case	_	_
2	Shanghai	Shanghai	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
3	some	some	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	4	det	_	_
4	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
5	speak	speak	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	Wu	Wu	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	Chinese	Chinese	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	home	home	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **speak** *speech: other* | present | some people | Wu Chinese |  | Shanghai |  | at home | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Wu sounds like «woo», but the tone matters.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:wu:x6:1
# text = Wu sounds like «woo», but the tone matters.
1	Wu	Wu	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	like	like	SCONJ	IN	_	5	mark	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	woo	woo	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	tone	tone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
11	matters	matter	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present | Wu |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **woo** *in a quote* | infinitive | Wu *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **matter** | present | the tone |  |  |  |  |  | vn matter-91 «NP V»: agent=Stimulus |

<!-- 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 -->
- ← previous: [wry](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wry/)
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