---
title: A boy, laughing at a classmate's old trainers: "But it's FUNNY!" The… — How to handle gossip: is it true, is i… · tree and pragmatics
description: A boy, laughing at a classmate's old trainers: "But it's FUNNY!" The classmate isn't laughing. What is it? Test 8 · ★★ of lesson 49 «How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face» of the adult life course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics 
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/t8/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [questions](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/) / [Adult life](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/) / [How to handle gossip: is it true, is i…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/) / t8

# Test 8 · ★★ · How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A boy, laughing at a classmate's old trainers: "But it's FUNNY!" The classmate isn't laughing. What is it?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** boy, classmate · **What happens:** laugh, be, not laugh · **To what, where:** old trainers, boy

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 8 · ★★ of lesson 49 «How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face» of the adult life course of Mova's primary school. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: [the test at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/#t8).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A boy, laughing at a classmate's old trainers: "But it's FUNNY!"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:1
# text = A boy, laughing at a classmate's old trainers: "But it's FUNNY!"
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	boy	boy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	4	punct	_	_
4	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	acl	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	classmate	classmate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	's	's	PART	POS	_	7	case	_	_
9	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	trainers	trainer	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	2	punct	_	_
12	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	But	but	CCONJ	CC	_	16	cc	_	_
14	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	16	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	16	cop	_	_
16	FUNNY	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	16	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	16	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | gerund | a boy *not said here* |  |  | a classmate's old trainers |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is** *in a quote* | present | classmate | a boy *not said here* |  |  |  | funny *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* The classmate isn't laughing.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:2
# text = The classmate isn't laughing.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	classmate	classmate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **laugh** | present · progressive | the classmate |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* What is it?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:3
# text = What is it?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	0	root	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	cop	_	_
3	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	1	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

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

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Teasing, not a joke, if he isn't laughing

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:o1:1
# text = Teasing, not a joke, if he isn't laughing
1	Teasing	tease	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
7	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
8	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	11	nsubj	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	11	advmod	_	_
11	laughing	laugh	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	1	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **tease** | gerund |  | a joke |  |  |  |  | vn ferret-35.6 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **laugh** *a condition, not said to happen* | present · progressive | he |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Fine, because trainers aren't private

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:o2:1
# text = Fine, because trainers aren't private
1	Fine	fine	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
3	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
4	trainers	trainer	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
5	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	7	advmod	_	_
7	private	private	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is** | present | trainers |  |  |  |  | private *property* | tree rules |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A joke, as long as most people laugh

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:o3:1
# text = A joke, as long as most people laugh
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
4	as	as	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	long	long	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	2	advmod	_	_
6	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
7	most	most	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	8	amod	_	_
8	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	nsubj	_	_
9	laugh	laugh	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | present | most people |  |  |  |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Fine, because it is only words

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:49-how-to-handle-gossip:t8:o4:1
# text = Fine, because it is only words
1	Fine	fine	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
3	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
4	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
6	only	only	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | it | Fine words |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (`world/data/school/`), as the course runner gave them to the student. **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 text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [How to handle gossip: is it true, is i…, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/t7/)
- next →: [How to handle gossip: is it true, is i…, test 9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/t9/)
- ↑ back to [How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/)