---
title: ★★★ «Birds of a feather flock together» is said about flamingoes and… — Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part… · tree and pragmatics
description: ★★★ «Birds of a feather flock together» is said about flamingoes and mustard. What is wrong with the moral as a piece of logic? Test 18 · ★★ of lesson 17 «Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part 1: The Mock Turtle's Story (the Duchess and her morals)» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with
---

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# Test 18 · ★★ · Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part 1: The Mock Turtle's…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
★★★ «Birds of a feather flock together» is said about flamingoes and mustard. What is wrong with the moral as a piece of logic?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 3 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **What happens:** say, be · **To what, where:** ★ · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 18 · ★★ of lesson 17 «Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part 1: The Mock Turtle's Story (the Duchess and her morals)» of the books 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/books/17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1/#t18).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* ★★★ «Birds of a feather flock together» is said about flamingoes and mustard.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:1
# text = ★★★ «Birds of a feather flock together» is said about flamingoes and mustard.
1	★	★	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	13	nsubj:pass	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	★	★	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	1	dep	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	★	★	X	FW	Foreign=Yes	1	dep	_	_
4	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	Birds	bird	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	appos	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	feather	feather	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	flock	flock	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
10	together	together	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	aux:pass	_	_
13	said	say	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
14	about	about	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	flamingoes	flamingoe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	obl	_	_
16	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
17	mustard	mustard	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	13	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present · passive |  | ★ |  |  |  | about flamingoes and mustard | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: subject=Topic |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* What is wrong with the moral as a piece of logic?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:2
# text = What is wrong with the moral as a piece of logic?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	moral	moral	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
7	as	as	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	piece	piece	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	logic	logic	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | with the moral; as a piece of logic; wrong *property* | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It lists two things, but neither of them is a flamingo

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:o1:1
# text = It lists two things, but neither of them is a flamingo
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	lists	list	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
6	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
7	neither	neither	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	12	nsubj	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nmod	_	_
10	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	flamingo	flamingo	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **list** | present | It | two things |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **is a** | present | neither | a flamingo |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is about flamingoes, but flamingoes do not flock

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:o2:1
# text = It is about flamingoes, but flamingoes do not flock
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	about	about	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	flamingoes	flamingoe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
6	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
7	flamingoes	flamingoe	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	flock	flock	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	parataxis	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | about flamingoes | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **flock** | present · do-support | flamingoes |  |  |  |  |  | vn herd-47.5.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 · ← Mova's choice {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is about birds, but one of the two things is not a bird, and so the moral cannot prove anything about flamingoes at all

<!-- fold The tree, 26 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:o3:1
# text = It is about birds, but one of the two things is not a bird, and so the moral cannot prove anything about flamingoes at all
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	about	about	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	birds	bird	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
6	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
7	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	15	nsubj	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	15	cop	_	_
13	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	15	advmod	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	23	punct	_	_
17	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	23	cc	_	_
18	so	so	ADV	RB	_	23	advmod	_	_
19	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
20	moral	moral	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	23	nsubj	_	_
21	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	23	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	23	advmod	_	_
23	prove	prove	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	parataxis	_	_
24	anything	anything	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	23	obj	_	_
25	about	about	ADP	IN	_	26	case	_	_
26	flamingoes	flamingoe	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	24	nmod	_	_
27	at	at	ADP	IN	_	28	case	_	_
28	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	23	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | about birds | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **is a** | present | one of the two things | a bird |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **not** **prove** | can | the moral | anything |  | all |  | about flamingoes | vn deduce-97.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent anything=Theme |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is about birds, but one of the two things is not a bird

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1:t18:o4:1
# text = It is about birds, but one of the two things is not a bird
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	about	about	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	birds	bird	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
6	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
7	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	15	nsubj	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
10	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
11	things	thing	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nmod	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	15	cop	_	_
13	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	15	advmod	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	bird	bird	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | about birds | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **is a** | present | one of the two things | a bird |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- div src -->

**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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- ← previous: [Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part…, test 17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1/t17/)
- next →: [Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part…, test 19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1/t19/)
- ↑ back to [Alice in Wonderland, chapter IX, part 1: The Mock Turtle's Story (the Duchess and her morals)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/17-alice-the-mock-turtles-story-1/)