---
title: Sawa, was the cat ever scared of the sultan? — Swahili Tales, The Nunda: the sultan's… · tree and pragmatics
description: Sawa, was the cat ever scared of the sultan? Test 12 · ★ of lesson 1795 «Swahili Tales, The Nunda: the sultan's cat devours his people, and his youngest son sets out to slay it» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; 
---

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# Test 12 · ★ · Swahili Tales, The Nunda: the sultan's cat devours his peo…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Sawa, was the cat ever scared of the sultan?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 4 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Sawa · **What happens:** be · **To what, where:** cat

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 12 · ★ of lesson 1795 «Swahili Tales, The Nunda: the sultan's cat devours his people, and his youngest son sets out to slay it» 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/1795-pg641-part46/#t12).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1795-pg641-part46:t12:1
# text = Sawa, was the cat ever scared of the sultan?
1	Sawa	Sawa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	cat	cat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	ever	ever	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	7	advmod	_	_
7	scared	scared	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	sultan	sultan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | Sawa | the cat |  |  |  |  | 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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nah, the sultan tried, but failed, fam

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1795-pg641-part46:t12:o1:1
# text = Nah, the sultan tried, but failed, fam
1	Nah	nah	INTJ	UH	_	5	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	sultan	sultan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	tried	try	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	failed	fail	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
10	fam	fam	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **try** | past | the sultan |  |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **fail** | past | the sultan *not said here* | fam |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fam=Eventuality |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nah, the sultan never even tried to kill it, but he sent his soldiers to the hills to hunt it every day for years.

<!-- fold The tree, 24 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1795-pg641-part46:t12:o2:1
# text = Nah, the sultan never even tried to kill it, but he sent his soldiers to the hills to hunt it every day for years.
1	Nah	nah	INTJ	UH	_	7	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	sultan	sultan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj:pass	_	_
5	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	7	advmod	_	_
6	even	even	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	tried	try	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	kill	kill	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
12	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	14	cc	_	_
13	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj	_	_
14	sent	send	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	7	conj	_	_
15	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	16	nmod:poss	_	_
16	soldiers	soldier	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obj	_	_
17	to	to	ADP	IN	_	19	case	_	_
18	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	19	det	_	_
19	hills	hill	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obl	_	_
20	to	to	PART	TO	_	21	mark	_	_
21	hunt	hunt	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	14	advcl	_	_
22	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	21	obj	_	_
23	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	24	det	_	_
24	day	day	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	obl:unmarked	_	_
25	for	for	ADP	IN	_	26	case	_	_
26	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	21	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
27	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **try** | participle · passive |  | the sultan |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **kill** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | sultan |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Theme |
| 3 | **send** | past | he | his soldiers |  | the hills |  |  | vn confine-92-1 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent soldier=Theme to hill=Destination |
| 4 | **hunt** | to-infinitive | he *not said here* | sultan |  |  | day; year |  | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Theme |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nah, the sultan never even tried to kill it

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1795-pg641-part46:t12:o3:1
# text = Nah, the sultan never even tried to kill it
1	Nah	nah	INTJ	UH	_	7	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	sultan	sultan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj:pass	_	_
5	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	7	advmod	_	_
6	even	even	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	tried	try	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	kill	kill	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **try** | participle · passive |  | the sultan |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **kill** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  | sultan |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Theme |

### Option 4 · ← Mova's choice {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Yeah, the cat ran from the sultan every time he came near with his soldiers and his spears

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:1795-pg641-part46:t12:o4:1
# text = Yeah, the cat ran from the sultan every time he came near with his soldiers and his spears
1	Yeah	yeah	INTJ	UH	_	5	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	5	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	cat	cat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	ran	run	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	sultan	sultan	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	_
9	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	10	det	_	_
10	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl:unmarked	_	_
11	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
12	came	come	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	conj	_	_
13	near	near	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
14	with	with	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
15	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	16	nmod:poss	_	_
16	soldiers	soldier	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	obl	_	_
17	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	19	cc	_	_
18	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	19	nmod:poss	_	_
19	spears	spear	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	16	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **run** | past | the cat |  |  | the sultan |  |  | vn run-51.3.2-2-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme from sultan=Trajectory |
| 2 | **come** | past | cat |  |  |  | time | with cat's soldiers and cat's spears; near *property* | vn escape-51.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

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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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