wolf
part of speech
noun (a wolf, wolves); verb (wolf, wolfs, wolfed, wolfing — wolf down)
meaning for a pupil
1) A wolf is a wild animal of the dog family that lives and hunts in groups called packs. tree →
2) To wolf food, or wolf it down, is to eat it very quickly in big mouthfuls. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: In Jacob's blessing, Benjamin is compared to a fierce wolf. The prophets use wolves for cruel rulers and judges who devour the people, and Isaiah pictures a time of peace when the wolf and the lamb feed together. Interpretation: Tradition reads Benjamin's wolf as the tribe's warlike strength. Isaiah's wolf and lamb are read as a picture of the peaceful days of the Messiah. In the primary lessons: In science, wolves are predators that hunt deer, elk and other animals; they live in packs led by a breeding pair, howl to communicate, and are ancestors of pet dogs. They live in North America, Europe and Asia; they once lived in Britain and Ireland but were hunted out. Wolves are rarely dangerous to people. In stories and fairy tales (Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Boy Who Cried Wolf), the wolf is often the clever, scary villain. Phrases: «a pack of wolves», «cry wolf» (raise false alarms), «a wolf in sheep's clothing» (someone who hides a bad nature behind a kind face), «wolf down», «lone wolf».
examples
- Benjamin is a wolf that raveneth; in the morning he devoureth the prey, and at even he divideth the spoil.' (Torah GEN.49.27, JPS 1917) tree →
- The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent's food. (Prophets ISA.65.25, JPS 1917) tree →
- Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey: to shed blood, and to destroy souls, so as to get dishonest gain. (Prophets EZK.22.27, JPS 1917) tree →
- Her princes in the midst of her are roaring lions; her judges are wolves of the desert, they leave not a bone for the morrow. (Prophets ZEP.3.3, JPS 1917) tree →
- A pack of wolves howled in the forest. tree →
- Wolves hunt together in packs. tree →
- The big bad wolf blew the house down. tree →
- Don't cry wolf, or no one will believe you. tree →
- He wolfed down his sandwich. tree →
- Pet dogs come from wolves. tree →
- Wolves were brought back to Yellowstone National Park. tree →
- A wolf in sheep's clothing pretends to be kind. tree →
- "Thank you, Mr. Wolf," said she. tree →
note
Irregular plural: wolf → wolves (f → ves), like leaf → leaves. Verb: «wolfs, wolfed». A baby wolf is a cub or pup; a female is a she-wolf. In real life, wolves usually avoid people.
In the corpora
- Benjamin is a wolf that raveneth; in the morning he devoureth the prey, and at even he divideth the spoil.'
- Wolves live in packs that are usually a family: a mother, a father and their young of different ages.
- Musk oxen form a ring facing outwards, with calves in the middle, so wolves meet only a wall of horns.
- When wolves come, musk oxen stand in a ring with the calves in the middle and their horns pointing out.
- Many dogs nibble grass and it is usually normal; scientists are not fully sure why, and wolves eat some plants too.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «wolf» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.