---
title: «I mean what I say,» says the Mock Turtle, offended. What is funny a… — Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1… · tree and pragmatics
description: «I mean what I say,» says the Mock Turtle, offended. What is funny about this? Test 10 · ★★ of lesson 19 «Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1: The Lobster Quadrille (a dance, a whiting and a porpoise)» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the qu
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/t10/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [questions](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/) / [Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/) / t10

# Test 10 · ★★ · Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1: The Lobster Quadri…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«I mean what I say,» says the Mock Turtle, offended. What is funny about this?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 2 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** Mock Turtle · **What happens:** mean, say, be · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 10 · ★★ of lesson 19 «Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1: The Lobster Quadrille (a dance, a whiting and a porpoise)» 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/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/#t10).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* «I mean what I say,» says the Mock Turtle, offended.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:1
# text = «I mean what I say,» says the Mock Turtle, offended.
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	mean	mean	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	ccomp	_	_
4	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	6	obj	_	_
5	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	say	say	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	9	punct	_	_
9	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	Mock	Mock	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	Turtle	Turtle	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	14	punct	_	_
14	offended	offended	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** *in a quote* | present | the Mock Turtle *= turtle* |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | present | the Mock Turtle *= turtle* |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent what=Topic |
| 3 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | the Mock Turtle |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=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 funny about this?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:2
# text = What is funny about this?
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	funny	funny	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	about	about	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	this	this	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | about this; funny *property* | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He is wrong about his own words

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:o1:1
# text = He is wrong about his own words
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	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	about	about	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
6	own	own	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | He |  |  |  |  | about his own words; wrong *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **word** |  | his *= he* |  |  |  |  |  | nom word «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He means «porpoise», and «porpoise» makes no sense — yet he's sure he means it

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:o2:1
# text = He means «porpoise», and «porpoise» makes no sense — yet he's sure he means it
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	porpoise	porpoise	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
8	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	9	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	porpoise	porpoise	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	9	punct	_	_
11	makes	make	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	parataxis	_	_
12	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	13	det	_	_
13	sense	sense	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	_
14	—	-	PUNCT	:	_	18	punct	_	_
15	yet	yet	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
16	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	cop	_	_
18	sure	sure	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	nsubj	_	_
19	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	20	nsubj	_	_
20	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	parataxis	_	_
21	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	20	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | He | porpoise |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent porpoise=Topic |
| 2 | **make** | present | porpoise | no sense |  |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent sense=Product |
| 3 | **is** | present | porpoise |  |  |  |  | sure *property* | tree rules |
| 4 | **mean** | present | sure | sense |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Topic |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He means «purpose»

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:o3:1
# text = He means «purpose»
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	purpose	purpose	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | He | purpose |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent purpose=Topic |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He means «porpoise» and it is a fish

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1:t10:o4:1
# text = He means «porpoise» and it is a fish
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	porpoise	porpoise	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
7	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	fish	fish	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | He | porpoise |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent porpoise=Topic |
| 2 | **is a** | present | porpoise | a fish |  |  |  |  | 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 -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1…, test 9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/t9/)
- next →: [Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1…, test 11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/t11/)
- ↑ back to [Alice in Wonderland, chapter X, part 1: The Lobster Quadrille (a dance, a whiting and a porpoise)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/19-alice-the-lobster-quadrille-1/)