---
title: A tigerfish leaps at a bird skimming over the water. Why can that wo… — The Congo river: tigerfish, the deepes… · tree and pragmatics
description: A tigerfish leaps at a bird skimming over the water. Why can that work? Test 4 of lesson 160 «The Congo river: tigerfish, the deepest river, lungfish and hidden birds» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's c
---

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# Test 4 · The Congo river: tigerfish, the deepest river, lungfish an…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A tigerfish leaps at a bird skimming over the water. Why can that work?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** tigerfish, bird, that · **What happens:** leap, skim, work · **To what, where:** water

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 4 of lesson 160 «The Congo river: tigerfish, the deepest river, lungfish and hidden birds» of the biology 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/biology/160-the-congo-river/#t4).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A tigerfish leaps at a bird skimming over the water.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:1
# text = A tigerfish leaps at a bird skimming over the water.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	tigerfish	tigerfish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	leaps	leap	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
7	skimming	skim	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	acl	_	_
8	over	over	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leap** | present | a tigerfish |  |  |  |  | at a bird | vn run-51.3.2-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme at bird=Trajectory |
| 2 | **skim** | gerund | a bird *not said here* |  |  | the water |  |  | vn wipe\_manner-10.4.1 «NP V NP.source»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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 can that work?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:2
# text = Why can that work?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	4	advmod	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	that	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	4	nsubj	_	_
4	work	work	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **work** | can | that |  |  |  |  |  | vn employment-95.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

## The options {#options}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It hunts fast and has long teeth that trap prey

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:o1:1
# text = It hunts fast and has long teeth that trap prey
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	hunts	hunt	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	fast	fast	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	2	advmod	_	_
4	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	5	cc	_	_
5	has	have	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
6	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	teeth	tooth	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	_
8	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	9	nsubj	_	_
9	trap	trap	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	acl:relcl	_	_
10	prey	prey	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **hunt** | present | It |  |  |  |  | fast *property* | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **have** | present |  | long teeth |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent tooth=Patient |
| 3 | **trap** | present | long teeth | prey |  |  |  |  | vn trick-59.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent prey=Patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It shoots a jet of water at the bird to knock it down

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:o2:1
# text = It shoots a jet of water at the bird to knock it down
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	shoots	shoot	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	jet	jet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
10	to	to	PART	TO	_	11	mark	_	_
11	knock	knock	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
12	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	11	obj	_	_
13	down	down	ADP	RP	_	11	compound:prt	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **shoot** | present | It | a jet of water |  |  |  | at the bird | vn throw-17.1-1 «NP V NP PP.destinations»: agent=Agent jet=Theme at bird=Destination |
| 2 | **knock down** | to-infinitive |  | jet |  |  |  |  | vn split-23.2 «NP V NP apart»: agent=Agent it=Patient |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It can leap out and fly for a few metres above the water

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:o3:1
# text = It can leap out and fly for a few metres above the water
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	leap	leap	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	out	out	ADP	RP	_	3	compound:prt	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	fly	fly	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	conj	_	_
7	for	for	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	few	few	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	metres	metre	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obl	_	_
11	above	above	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leap out** | can | It |  |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **fly** | infinitive |  |  |  | the water |  | for a few metres | vn spatial\_configuration-47.6-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme above water=Location |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is not a fish at all but a bird that dives into the river

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:160-the-congo-river:t4:o4:1
# text = It is not a fish at all but a bird that dives into the river
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	fish	fish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	5	nmod	_	_
8	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	_
11	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	12	nsubj	_	_
12	dives	dive	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
13	into	into	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	river	river	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is a** | present | It | a fish but a bird |  | all |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **dive** | present | that |  |  | the river |  |  | vn meander-47.7 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme into river=Location |

<!-- 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 -->

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