fast

«fast» in Mova's school dictionary: moving or doing something quickly — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

adjective (fast, faster, fastest); adverb (fast); verb (fast, fasts, fasted, fasting); noun (a fast)

meaning for a pupil

1) Fast means moving or doing something quickly. tree →

2) A clock or watch that is fast shows a time later than the real time. tree →

3) Fast also means firmly, tightly: «stuck fast», «fast asleep» (very deeply asleep). tree →

4) To fast is to not eat for a time, often for religious reasons; a fast is that time. tree →

sense in the lessons

In school maths: speed comparisons — who is faster, how fast (a rate: distance ÷ time); fastest time; a clock that is 5 minutes fast. In science: speed, forces, friction slows things down. In everyday life: fast food, running fast on sports day, «not so fast!». Phrases: «as fast as», «fast asleep», «fast food», «hold fast», «fast forward».

examples

• How fast does the car go? tree →
• Tom runs faster than Ben. tree →
• The fast train goes 120 km an hour. tree →
• Who is the fastest? tree →
• The cheetah is the fastest land animal. tree →
• My watch is 5 minutes fast. tree →
• The baby is fast asleep. tree →
• Some people fast during Ramadan. tree →
• His chest heaved hard and fast. tree →

note

«Fast» is both adjective and adverb: «a fast car», «she runs fast» (not «fastly»). «Breakfast» is the meal that breaks the night's fast. Maths: «how fast» asks for a speed (distance ÷ time). Trap: faster means less time for the same distance; a clock 5 minutes fast means take away 5 minutes for the real time.

In the corpora

• A tidy house helps buyers imagine living there and can sell faster or for more money.
• Some cancer treatments make hair fall out because they attack fast-growing cells; the hair usually grows back after treatment.
• Speed limits exist because faster cars cause worse accidents, especially near schools and homes.
• Small spends like coffees and snacks add up fast; managing money means knowing what comes in and what goes out.
• Death hoaxes about famous people spread fast because they are shocking; check a proper news site before believing or sharing one.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «fast» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.