---
title: What was the principal motive for the wife's litigation? — Spanish Fairy Tales, The Unfinished Ho… · tree and pragmatics
description: What was the principal motive for the wife's litigation? Exam question 3 of lesson 1306 «Spanish Fairy Tales, The Unfinished Houses, part 31: the greedy wife sues to win the unfinished houses» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and o
---

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# Exam question 3 · Spanish Fairy Tales, The Unfinished Houses, part 31: the g…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What was the principal motive for the wife's litigation?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 4 · **The right answer:** option 1 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** principal motive, wife · **What happens:** be, litigate

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 3 of lesson 1306 «Spanish Fairy Tales, The Unfinished Houses, part 31: the greedy wife sues to win the unfinished houses» of the books 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/books/1306-pg3454-part31/#e3).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1306-pg3454-part31:e3:1
# text = What was the principal motive for the wife's litigation?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	0	root	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	1	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	principal	principal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	motive	motive	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nsubj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	wife	wife	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	's	's	PART	POS	_	8	case	_	_
10	litigation	litigation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | the principal motive for the wife's litigation |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **litigate** |  | the wife |  |  |  |  |  | nom litigation «act intransitive»: poss=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 · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her wish to possess the unfinished houses

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1306-pg3454-part31:e3:o1:1
# text = Her wish to possess the unfinished houses
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	wish	wish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	possess	possess	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	unfinished	unfinished	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	houses	house	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **possess** | to-infinitive | Her wish | the unfinished houses |  |  |  |  | vn own-100.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot house=Theme |
| 2 | **wish** |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom wish «feeling intransitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her determination to win back the houses that her husband had given away, regardless of the cost to his brother

<!-- fold The tree, 20 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1306-pg3454-part31:e3:o2:1
# text = Her determination to win back the houses that her husband had given away, regardless of the cost to his brother
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	determination	determination	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	win	win	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	back	back	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	houses	house	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
8	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	12	obj	_	_
9	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	husband	husband	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nsubj:pass	_	_
11	had	have	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	12	aux	_	_
12	given	give	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	acl:relcl	_	_
13	away	away	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
15	regardless	regardless	ADV	RB	_	18	advmod	_	_
16	of	of	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
17	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
18	cost	cost	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
19	to	to	ADP	IN	_	21	case	_	_
20	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	21	nmod:poss	_	_
21	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	18	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **win back** | to-infinitive | Her determination | the houses |  |  |  | of the cost to husband's brother | vn succeed-74-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent house=Eventuality |
| 2 | **give away** | past · perfect · passive |  | determination's husband |  |  |  | away *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **determine** |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom determination «act intransitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her anger at her husband's brother

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1306-pg3454-part31:e3:o3:1
# text = Her anger at her husband's brother
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	anger	anger	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
4	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	5	nmod:poss	_	_
5	husband	husband	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	's	's	PART	POS	_	5	case	_	_
7	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **anger** |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  | at her husband's brother | nom anger «feeling intransitive»: poss=agent at=obl |

### Option 4 · ← Mova's choice {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Her wish to possess the unfinished houses so that she could make them into a palace and outshine everyone

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1306-pg3454-part31:e3:o4:1
# text = Her wish to possess the unfinished houses so that she could make them into a palace and outshine everyone
1	Her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	wish	wish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	possess	possess	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	unfinished	unfinished	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	houses	house	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
8	so	so	SCONJ	IN	ExtPos=SCONJ	12	mark	_	_
9	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	8	fixed	_	_
10	she	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
11	could	could	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	12	aux	_	_
12	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	advcl	_	_
13	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	obj	_	_
14	into	into	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
15	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	palace	palace	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	_
17	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	outshine	outshine	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	conj	_	_
19	everyone	everyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Tot	18	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **possess** | to-infinitive | Her wish | the unfinished houses |  |  |  |  | vn own-100.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot house=Theme |
| 2 | **make** | could | wish | houses *= house* |  | a palace |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP V NP.material PP.product»: agent=Agent they=Material into palace=Product |
| 3 | **outshine** | infinitive | Her wish *not said here* | everyone |  |  |  |  | vn exceed-90 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot everyone=Theme |
| 4 | **wish** |  | Her *= she* |  |  |  |  |  | nom wish «feeling intransitive»: poss=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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