genie
part of speech
noun (a genie, genies or genii)
meaning for a pupil
1) In stories from Arabia and the Middle East, a magic spirit, often living in a lamp or bottle, who must obey whoever sets it free and may grant wishes. tree →
2) (informal) «the genie is out of the bottle» means something has happened that cannot be undone. tree →
sense in the lessons
Found in fairy tales, especially «Aladdin» from The Thousand and One Nights. The older Arabic word is «jinn» or «djinn»; in Kipling's Just So Stories, «How the Camel Got His Hump», the Djinn in charge of All Deserts gives the lazy Camel his hump. In stories a genie brings magic, wishes and often a lesson about wanting too much.
examples
- Aladdin rubbed the lamp and a genie appeared. tree →
- The genie said, «Your wish is my command.» tree →
- If you met a genie, what would you wish for? tree →
- The Djinn gave the Camel a hump for saying «Humph!» tree →
- The genie was trapped in the bottle for a thousand years. tree →
- Once the secret was out, the genie couldn't be put back in the bottle. tree →
- In the play, my friend dressed up as a genie. tree →
- "Master, I obey," said the genie. tree →
note
Say «JEE-nee». Plural: genies (or old genii). Related to Arabic «jinn/djinn». Genies are made-up, from stories; they are not real.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «genie» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.