---
title: What would happen if the only place a kitten could scratch were the… — A kitten at home: litter trays, scratc… · tree and pragmatics
description: What would happen if the only place a kitten could scratch were the sofa? Test 9 · ★ of lesson 327 «A kitten at home: litter trays, scratching posts and play» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was
---

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# Test 9 · ★ · A kitten at home: litter trays, scratching posts and play

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What would happen if the only place a kitten could scratch were the sofa?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** kitten, only place · **What happens:** happen, scratch, be · **To what, where:** only place, sofa

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 9 · ★ of lesson 327 «A kitten at home: litter trays, scratching posts and play» 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/327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play/#t9).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play:t9:1
# text = What would happen if the only place a kitten could scratch were the sofa?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj	_	_
2	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	happen	happen	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	14	mark	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	only	only	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	place	place	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nsubj	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	kitten	kitten	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
10	could	could	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	11	aux	_	_
11	scratch	scratch	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	acl:relcl	_	_
12	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	14	cop	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	sofa	sofa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **happen** | would |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **scratch** | could | a kitten | the only place *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent place=Theme |
| 3 | **is a** *a condition, not said to happen* | past | the only place | the sofa |  |  |  |  | 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.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It would stop scratching for ever, since there was nowhere it was allowed

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play:t9:o1:1
# text = It would stop scratching for ever, since there was nowhere it was allowed
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	stop	stop	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	scratching	scratch	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	14	csubj:pass	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	ever	ever	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	since	since	SCONJ	IN	_	10	mark	_	_
9	there	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	10	expl	_	_
10	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	14	aux:pass	_	_
11	nowhere	nowhere	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
12	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj:pass	_	_
13	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	14	aux:pass	_	_
14	allowed	allow	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stop** | would | It |  |  |  |  |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP.eventuality V»: agent=Eventuality |
| 2 | **scratch** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn rummage-35.5 «NP V PP.location PP.theme»: agent=Agent for ever=Theme |
| 3 | **allow** | past · passive |  | it |  |  |  |  | vn allow-64.1-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Beneficiary |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Its claws would fall off

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play:t9:o2:1
# text = Its claws would fall off
1	Its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	claws	claw	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	fall	fall	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	off	off	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **fall off** | would | Its claws |  |  |  |  |  | vn calibratable\_cos-45.6.1-1 «NP.attribute V»: agent=Attribute |

### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It would scratch the sofa, because it needs to scratch somewhere

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play:t9:o3:1
# text = It would scratch the sofa, because it needs to scratch somewhere
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	scratch	scratch	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	sofa	sofa	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
7	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	9	mark	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	nsubj	_	_
9	needs	need	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	parataxis	_	_
10	to	to	PART	TO	_	11	mark	_	_
11	scratch	scratch	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	xcomp	_	_
12	somewhere	somewhere	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	11	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **scratch** | would | It | the sofa |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent sofa=Theme |
| 2 | **need** | present | sofa |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot clause=Theme |
| 3 | **scratch** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | sofa *not said here* |  |  |  |  | somewhere *property* | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It would scratch only the dog

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:327-a-kitten-at-home-litter-trays-scratching-posts-and-play:t9:o4:1
# text = It would scratch only the dog
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	scratch	scratch	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	only	only	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	dog	dog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **scratch** | would | It | the dog |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

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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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