---
title: Dad: "If we'd saved up first we'd have paid £800 less for this car."… — Borrowing and debt · tree and pragmatics
description: Dad: "If we'd saved up first we'd have paid £800 less for this car." Why? Test 12 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Borrowing and debt» of the adult life course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was right.
---

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# Test 12 · ★★ · Borrowing and debt

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad: "If we'd saved up first we'd have paid £800 less for this car." Why?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** we · **What happens:** save up, pay · **To what, where:** we

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 12 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Borrowing and debt» 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/8-borrowing-and-debt/#t12).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Dad: "If we'd saved up first we'd have paid £800 less for this car."

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:1
# text = Dad: "If we'd saved up first we'd have paid £800 less for this car."
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	13	punct	_	_
3	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	If	if	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
5	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
7	saved	save	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	13	advcl	_	_
8	up	up	ADP	RP	_	7	compound:prt	_	_
9	first	first	ADV	RB	NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	7	advmod	_	_
10	we	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	13	nsubj:pass	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	13	aux	_	_
12	have	have	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	13	aux	_	_
13	paid	pay	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	parataxis	_	_
14	£	£	SYM	$	_	13	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	800	800	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	14	nummod	_	_
16	less	less	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	14	amod	_	_
17	for	for	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
18	this	this	DET	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	19	det	_	_
19	car	car	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
21	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	13	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **save up** *a condition, not said to happen, in a quote* | would | we |  |  |  |  | first *property* | vn get-13.5.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **pay** *in a quote* | would · perfect · passive |  | we |  |  |  |  | vn pay-68-1 «NP V NP NP»: subject=Recipient £=Asset |

<!-- .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:* Why?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:2
# text = Why?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

## The options {#options}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Buying with a loan adds interest to the price

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:o1:1
# text = Buying with a loan adds interest to the price
1	Buying	buy	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	csubj	_	_
2	with	with	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	loan	loan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
5	adds	add	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	interest	interest	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
7	to	to	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	price	price	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **buy** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  | with a loan | vn accept-77.1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **add** *speech: assert* | present | Buying | interest |  |  |  | to the price | vn mix-22.1-2 «NP V NP PP.co-patient»: agent=Agent interest=Patient to price=Co-Patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cars are always cheaper if you pay for them later

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:o2:1
# text = Cars are always cheaper if you pay for them later
1	Cars	car	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	4	advmod	_	_
4	cheaper	cheap	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	0	root	_	_
5	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
6	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
7	pay	pay	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	advcl	_	_
8	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	obl	_	_
10	later	late	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	7	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Cars |  |  |  |  | always, cheap *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **pay** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | you |  |  |  |  | for Cars *= car*; late *property* | vn pay-68-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent for they=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Saved money earns a discount at the garage

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:o3:1
# text = Saved money earns a discount at the garage
1	Saved	save	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	amod	_	_
2	money	money	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	earns	earn	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	discount	discount	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	garage	garage	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **save** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn get-13.5.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **earn** | present | Saved money | a discount |  | the garage |  |  | vn get-13.5.1-1 «NP V NP PP.source NP.asset»: agent=Agent discount=Theme at garage=Asset |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The loan company gave him a refund

```conllu
# sent_id = question:adult-life:8-borrowing-and-debt:t12:o4:1
# text = The loan company gave him a refund
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	loan	loan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	company	company	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	gave	give	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	him	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	iobj	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	refund	refund	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | past | the loan company | a refund | him *= he* |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent he=Recipient refund=Theme |

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**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.

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- ← previous: [Borrowing and debt, test 11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/t11/)
- next →: [Borrowing and debt, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/e1/)
- ↑ back to [Borrowing and debt](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/)