---
title: zhou — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «zhou» in the school dictionary: The Zhou dynasty ruled China for about 800 years, from about 1046 BC to 256 BC, longer than any other Chinese dynasty. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# zhou

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Zhou dynasty, Zhou, zhōu, Confucius, Zhōumò, Many Chinese people · **What happens:** rule, be, mean, sound, not be, last · **To what, where:** China, 1046, common Chinese surname, English word, end, common family name

<!-- .vabout -->
«zhou» in the school dictionary: its 3 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: [zhou in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/zhou.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The Zhou dynasty ruled China for about 800 years, from about 1046 BC to 256 BC, longer than any other Chinese dynasty.

<!-- fold The tree, 22 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:m1:1
# text = The Zhou dynasty ruled China for about 800 years, from about 1046 BC to 256 BC, longer than any other Chinese dynasty.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	dynasty	dynasty	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	ruled	rule	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	China	China	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	about	about	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	800	800	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	9	nummod	_	_
9	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
11	from	from	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	about	about	ADV	RB	_	13	advmod	_	_
13	1046	1046	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	4	obl	_	_
14	BC	BC	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	13	nmod:unmarked	_	_
15	to	to	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	256	256	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	13	nmod	_	_
17	BC	BC	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	16	nmod:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	19	punct	_	_
19	longer	long	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	4	advmod	_	_
20	than	than	ADP	IN	_	24	case	_	_
21	any	any	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	24	det	_	_
22	other	other	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	24	amod	_	_
23	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	24	amod	_	_
24	dynasty	dynasty	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
25	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **rule** | past | the Zhou dynasty | China |  | 1046  BC to 256  BC | year | long *property* | vn dub-29.3.2 «NP V NP NP»: agent=Agent china=Result |

<!-- .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}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Zhou is a common Chinese surname, as in Zhou Enlai, a Chinese premier.

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:m2:1
# text = Zhou is a common Chinese surname, as in Zhou Enlai, a Chinese premier.
1	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
4	common	common	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
5	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	surname	surname	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	as	as	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	appos	_	_
11	Enlai	Enlai	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	flat	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
14	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	premier	premier	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

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

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
zhōu can mean "week" (xīngqī and zhōu both mean week), "state" or "province", or "porridge/congee" (粥 zhōu). It sounds like "joe" to an English ear. It is not an English word.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* zhōu can mean "week" (xīngqī and zhōu both mean week), "state" or "province", or "porridge/congee" (粥 zhōu).

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:m3:1
# text = zhōu can mean "week" (xīngqī and zhōu both mean week), "state" or "province", or "porridge/congee" (粥 zhōu).
1	zhōu	zhōu	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	week	week	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
7	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	xīngqī	xīngqī	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
10	zhōu	zhōu	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	12	nsubj	_	_
11	both	both	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
12	mean	mean	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
13	week	week	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
16	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	17	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	state	state	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	17	punct	_	_
19	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	21	cc	_	_
20	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	21	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	province	province	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	21	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	26	punct	_	_
24	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	26	cc	_	_
25	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	26	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
26	porridge/congee	porridge/congee	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	26	punct	_	_
28	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	29	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
29	粥	粥	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	26	conj	_	_
30	zhōu	zhōu	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	29	flat:foreign	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	26	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
32	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | can | zhōu |  |  |  | week |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **mean** | present | zhōu |  |  |  | week | both, xīngqī *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* It sounds like "joe" to an English ear.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:m3:2
# text = It sounds like "joe" 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	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	joe	joe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	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	2	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present | zhōu |  |  |  |  | like joe; to a English ear | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V ADJ PP.experiencer»: agent=Stimulus to ear=Experiencer |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* It is not an English word.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:m3:3
# 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 | zhōu | a English word |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The Zhou dynasty lasted about 800 years.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:x1:1
# text = The Zhou dynasty lasted about 800 years.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	dynasty	dynasty	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	lasted	last	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	about	about	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
6	800	800	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	7	nummod	_	_
7	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **last** | past | the Zhou dynasty |  |  |  | year |  | vn cost-54.2 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Confucius lived near the end of the Zhou dynasty.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:x2:1
# text = Confucius lived near the end of the Zhou dynasty.
1	Confucius	Confucius	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	lived	live	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	near	near	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	end	end	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	dynasty	dynasty	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **live** | past | Confucius |  |  |  | near the end of the Zhou dynasty |  | vn exist-47.1-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme near end=Location |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Zhōumò means "weekend" in Mandarin.

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

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Zhou is a common family name in China.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:x4:1
# text = Zhou is a common family name in China.
1	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
4	common	common	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
5	family	family	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	name	name	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	China	China	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

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

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Many Chinese people eat zhōu, rice porridge, for breakfast.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:x5:1
# text = Many Chinese people eat zhōu, rice porridge, for breakfast.
1	Many	many	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
2	Chinese	Chinese	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	eat	eat	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	zhōu	zhōu	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	8	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	rice	rice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	porridge	porridge	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
10	for	for	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	breakfast	breakfast	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **eat** | present | Many Chinese people |  |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **porridge** |  | zhōu |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
"Zhou" sounds a bit like "joe".

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:zhou:x6:1
# text = "Zhou" sounds a bit like "joe".
1	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	2	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	Zhou	Zhou	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
4	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	bit	bit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl:unmarked	_	_
7	like	like	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	joe	joe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sound** | present | Zhou | a bit |  |  |  | like joe | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V PP.attribute»: 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 -->

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