---
title: «my uncle says to count rings you just chop it down, easy» Why is me… — Park trees: telling oaks, maples, ches… · tree and pragmatics
description: «my uncle says to count rings you just chop it down, easy» Why is measuring better? Test 3 of lesson 339 «Park trees: telling oaks, maples, chestnuts, birches, limes and willows apart» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each
---

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# Test 3 · Park trees: telling oaks, maples, chestnuts, birches, lime…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«my uncle says to count rings you just chop it down, easy» Why is measuring better?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** uncle, you · **What happens:** say, count, chop down, measure · **To what, where:** rings, it · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 3 of lesson 339 «Park trees: telling oaks, maples, chestnuts, birches, limes and willows apart» 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/339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart/#t3).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart:t3:1
# text = «my uncle says to count rings you just chop it down, easy» Why is measuring better?
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	uncle	uncle	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	count	count	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	advcl	_	_
7	rings	ring	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	_
8	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
9	just	just	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
10	chop	chop	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	ccomp	_	_
11	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	obj	_	_
12	down	down	ADP	RP	_	10	compound:prt	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
14	easy	easy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	14	punct	_	_
16	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	18	advmod	_	_
17	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	aux	_	_
18	measuring	measure	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	4	ccomp	_	_
19	better	good	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	18	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | present | my uncle |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **count** *in a quote* | to-infinitive | you *not said here* | rings |  |  |  |  | vn multiply-108 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent ring=Theme |
| 3 | **chop down** *in a quote* | present | you | it |  |  |  |  | vn carve-21.2-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Patient |
| 4 | **measure** | present · progressive |  |  |  |  |  | good *property* | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme |

<!-- .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 -->
Trees have no rings until they are cut

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart:t3:o1:1
# text = Trees have no rings until they are cut
1	Trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	have	have	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	det	_	_
4	rings	ring	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
5	until	until	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
6	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	nsubj	_	_
7	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	aux:pass	_	_
8	cut	cut	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **have** | present | Trees | no rings |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **cut** | present · passive |  | Trees *= tree* |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: subject=Product |

### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
You can guess the age without killing the tree

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart:t3:o2:1
# text = You can guess the age without killing the tree
1	You	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	guess	guess	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	age	age	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	without	without	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
7	killing	kill	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	3	advcl	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **guess** | can | You | the age |  |  |  |  | vn conjecture-29.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent age=Theme |
| 2 | **kill** | gerund | You *not said here* | the tree |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent tree=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Chopping always gives the wrong number

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart:t3:o3:1
# text = Chopping always gives the wrong number
1	Chopping	chopping	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	3	advmod	_	_
3	gives	give	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	number	number	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | present | Chopping | the wrong number |  |  |  | always *property* | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent number=Theme |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Measuring tells you the exact birthday

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:339-park-trees-telling-oaks-maples-chestnuts-birches-limes-and-willows-apart:t3:o4:1
# text = Measuring tells you the exact birthday
1	Measuring	measure	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	nsubj	_	_
2	tells	tell	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	2	iobj	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	exact	exact	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	birthday	birthday	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **measure** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **tell** *speech: assert* | present |  | the exact birthday | you |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP-Dative NP»: agent=Agent you=Recipient birthday=Topic |

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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.

<!-- /div -->

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