influence

«influence» in Mova's school dictionary: the power to change how someone thinks or acts, or how… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 3 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (influence, influences; an influence); verb (influence, influences, influenced, influencing)

meaning for a pupil

1) Influence is the power to change how someone thinks or acts, or how something happens. tree →

2) An influence is a person or thing that changes you: «She is a good influence.» tree →

3) (verb) To influence means to have an effect on someone or something. tree →

4) Under the influence (euphemism) means drunk or on drugs. tree →

sense in the lessons

In science lessons we test what influences plant growth (factors). In stories and life friends and adverts influence choices. In safety, «under the influence» warns against drinking and driving. Phrases: «a good/bad influence», «under the influence», «influence on».

examples

• Light and water influence how fast plants grow. tree →
• Her big sister is a good influence on her. tree →
• Adverts try to influence what we buy. tree →
• The moon influences the tides. tree →
• Never get in a car with a driver under the influence. tree →
• Which factor had the most influence on the result? tree →
• They always were a bad influence! tree →

note

Noun can be countable («a good influence») or uncountable («much influence»). Adjective: influential. Today an «influencer» is someone online who changes what followers buy or think.

In the corpora

• Van Gogh painted his own versions of prints by the Japanese artist Hiroshige to learn from them, and that influence changed his style.
• "Under the influence" means drunk or on drugs.
• Some cousins are a bad influence; saying no to something wrong is right, even with family.

Trees and pragmatics

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