---
title: What signal did the Captain prescribe for the commencement of the at… — Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty… · tree and pragmatics
description: What signal did the Captain prescribe for the commencement of the attack? Exam question 2 of lesson 1471 «Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, part 58: Morgiana foils the robbers' attack and dances at supper» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragm
---

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# Exam question 2 · Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, part 58: M…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What signal did the Captain prescribe for the commencement of the attack?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** signal · **What happens:** prescribe

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 1471 «Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, part 58: Morgiana foils the robbers' attack and dances at supper» 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/1471-pg503-part58/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1471-pg503-part58:e2:1
# text = What signal did the Captain prescribe for the commencement of the attack?
1	What	what	DET	WDT	PronType=Int	2	det	_	_
2	signal	signal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	did	do	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	Captain	Captain	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
6	prescribe	prescribe	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
7	for	for	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	commencement	commencement	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	attack	attack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **prescribe** | past · do-support | what signal |  |  |  |  | for the commencement of the attack | 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 -->
The lighting of a torch at the gate

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1471-pg503-part58:e2:o1:1
# text = The lighting of a torch at the gate
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	lighting	lighting	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	torch	torch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	gate	gate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The sounding of a horn from the rooftop beside the stable

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1471-pg503-part58:e2:o2:1
# text = The sounding of a horn from the rooftop beside the stable
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	sounding	sounding	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	horn	horn	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	rooftop	rooftop	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
9	beside	beside	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	stable	stable	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The throwing of stones from a window

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1471-pg503-part58:e2:o3:1
# text = The throwing of stones from a window
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	throwing	throwing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	stones	stone	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nmod	_	_
5	from	from	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	window	window	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The ringing of a bell in the yard

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1471-pg503-part58:e2:o4:1
# text = The ringing of a bell in the yard
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	ringing	ringing	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	bell	bell	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	in	in	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	yard	yard	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ring** |  |  | a bell |  |  |  | in the yard | nom ringing «event transitive»: of=patient in=obl |

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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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- ← previous: [Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty…, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/1471-pg503-part58/e1/)
- next →: [Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty…, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/1471-pg503-part58/e3/)
- ↑ back to [Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, part 58: Morgiana foils the robbers' attack and dances at supper](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/1471-pg503-part58/)