---
title: Ascertain the consequence of a failure of a rodent's incisors to mee… — Rodents: the biggest group of mammals… · tree and pragmatics
description: Ascertain the consequence of a failure of a rodent's incisors to meet correctly. Exam question 4 of lesson 316 «Rodents: the biggest group of mammals and their ever-growing teeth» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each opti
---

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# Exam question 4 · Rodents: the biggest group of mammals and their ever-growi…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ascertain the consequence of a failure of a rodent's incisors to meet correctly.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you, incisors · **What happens:** ascertain, meet, fail · **To what, where:** consequence

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 4 of lesson 316 «Rodents: the biggest group of mammals and their ever-growing teeth» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. 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/316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth/#e4).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth:e4:1
# text = Ascertain the consequence of a failure of a rodent's incisors to meet correctly.
1	Ascertain	ascertain	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	consequence	consequence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	failure	failure	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	rodent	rodent	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	's	's	PART	POS	_	9	case	_	_
11	incisors	incisor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	_
12	to	to	PART	TO	_	13	mark	_	_
13	meet	meet	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	1	advcl	_	_
14	correctly	correctly	ADV	RB	_	13	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ascertain** | imperative | you *not said here* | the consequence of a failure of a rodent's incisors |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent consequence=Topic |
| 2 | **meet** | to-infinitive | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  | correctly *property* | vn meet-36.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **fail** |  | a rodent's incisors |  |  |  |  |  | nom failure «act intransitive»: of=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.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The animal grows a further pair of incisors to compensate

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth:e4:o1:1
# text = The animal grows a further pair of incisors to compensate
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	animal	animal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	grows	grow	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	further	further	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	pair	pair	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	incisors	incisor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	_
9	to	to	PART	TO	_	10	mark	_	_
10	compensate	compensate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	advcl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **grow** | present | the animal | a further pair of incisors |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location pair=Theme |
| 2 | **compensate** | to-infinitive | the animal *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn equip-13.4.2-1-1 «NP.theme V NP»: agent=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
No consequence arises, as rodent incisors do not grow

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth:e4:o2:1
# text = No consequence arises, as rodent incisors do not grow
1	No	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	2	det	_	_
2	consequence	consequence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	arises	arise	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
5	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	10	mark	_	_
6	rodent	rodent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	incisors	incisor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nsubj	_	_
8	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux	_	_
9	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
10	grow	grow	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **arise** | present | no consequence |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **not** **grow** | present · do-support | rodent incisors |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The incisors cease to grow and are gradually replaced by additional molars from behind

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth:e4:o3:1
# text = The incisors cease to grow and are gradually replaced by additional molars from behind
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	incisors	incisor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	cease	cease	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	grow	grow	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
7	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	aux:pass	_	_
8	gradually	gradually	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	_
9	replaced	replace	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	conj	_	_
10	by	by	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	additional	additional	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	molars	molar	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	9	obl	_	_
13	from	from	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	behind	behind	ADV	RB	_	9	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cease** | present | the incisors |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Affector clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **grow** | to-infinitive | the incisors *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **replace** | present · passive | additional molars |  |  |  |  | gradually *property* | vn substitute-13.6.2-1 «NP V PP.co-theme»: agent=Theme |

### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The incisors continue to grow unchecked and may curl, impeding feeding

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:316-rodents-the-biggest-group-of-mammals-and-their-ever-growing-teeth:e4:o4:1
# text = The incisors continue to grow unchecked and may curl, impeding feeding
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	incisors	incisor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	continue	continue	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	grow	grow	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	unchecked	unchecked	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	xcomp	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
8	may	may	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	9	aux	_	_
9	curl	curl	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	impeding	impede	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	9	advcl	_	_
12	feeding	feeding	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **continue** | present | the incisors |  |  |  |  |  | vn continue-55.3 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality |
| 2 | **grow** | to-infinitive | the incisors *not said here* |  |  |  |  | unchecked *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **curl** | may | the incisors *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn coil-9.6-1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Theme |
| 4 | **impede** | gerund | the incisors *not said here* | feeding |  |  |  |  | vn discourage-64.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Causer feeding=Eventuality |

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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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- next →: [Rodents of every kind: squirrels, marm…, test 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/317-rodents-of-every-kind-squirrels-marmots-prairie-dogs-porcupines-chinchillas-and-dormice/t1/)
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