--- title: What would have happened if the Stranger-man had understood Taffy's… — Just So Stories, How the First Letter… · tree and pragmatics description: What would have happened if the Stranger-man had understood Taffy's language? Test 4 · ★ of lesson 84 «Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 1: a broken spear and a picture on birch-bark» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the q --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/t4/) [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/) / [Just So Stories, How the First Letter…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/) / t4 # Test 4 · ★ · Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 1:… What would have happened if the Stranger-man had understood Taffy's language? **Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **What happens:** happen, understand · **To what, where:** Stranger man This is test 4 · ★ of lesson 84 «Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 1: a broken spear and a picture on birch-bark» 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/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/#t4). ## The question {#question} ```conllu # sent_id = question:books:84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear:t4:1 # text = What would have happened if the Stranger-man had understood Taffy's language? 1 What what PRON WP PronType=Int 4 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 4 aux _ _ 4 happened happen VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 0 root _ _ 5 if if SCONJ IN _ 11 mark _ _ 6 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 9 det _ _ 7 Stranger stranger NOUN NN Number=Sing 9 compound _ SpaceAfter=No 8 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 7 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 9 man man NOUN NN Number=Sing 11 nsubj:pass _ _ 10 had have AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 11 aux _ _ 11 understood understand VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 4 advcl _ _ 12 Taffy Taffy PROPN NNP Number=Sing 14 nmod:poss _ SpaceAfter=No 13 's 's PART POS _ 12 case _ _ 14 language language NOUN NN Number=Sing 11 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 15 ? ? PUNCT . _ 4 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **happen** | would · perfect | | | | | | | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme | | 2 | **understand** *a condition, not said to happen* | past · perfect · passive | | the Stranger man | | | | | tree rules | 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} Taffy would have got her spear ```conllu # sent_id = question:books:84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear:t4:o1:1 # text = Taffy would have got her spear 1 Taffy Taffy PROPN NNP Number=Sing 4 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 4 aux _ _ 4 got get VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 0 root _ _ 5 her her PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 6 nmod:poss _ _ 6 spear spear NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **get** | would · perfect | Taffy | Taffy's spear | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer spear=Stimulus | ### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2} He could simply have been told to fetch the spear ```conllu # sent_id = question:books:84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear:t4:o2:1 # text = He could simply have been told to fetch the spear 1 He he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 6 nsubj _ _ 2 could could AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 6 aux _ _ 3 simply simply ADV RB _ 6 advmod _ _ 4 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 6 aux _ _ 5 been be AUX VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 6 aux:pass _ _ 6 told tell VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 0 root _ _ 7 to to PART TO _ 8 mark _ _ 8 fetch fetch VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 6 xcomp _ _ 9 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 10 det _ _ 10 spear spear NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **tell** *speech: assert* | could · perfect · passive | | He | | | | simply *property* | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: subject=Recipient clause=Topic | | 2 | **fetch** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | He *not said here* | the spear | | | | | vn get-13.5.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent spear=Theme | ### Option 3 {#o3} He would have fished ```conllu # sent_id = question:books:84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear:t4:o3:1 # text = He would have fished 1 He he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 4 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 4 aux _ _ 4 fished fish VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 0 root _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **fish** | would · perfect | He | | | | | | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | ### Option 4 {#o4} He would have helped at once ```conllu # sent_id = question:books:84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear:t4:o4:1 # text = He would have helped at once 1 He he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 4 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 4 aux _ _ 4 helped help VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 0 root _ _ 5 at at ADP IN _ 6 case _ _ 6 once once ADV RB NumForm=Word|NumType=Mult 4 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **help** | would · perfect | He | | | | | | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent | **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. - ← previous: [Just So Stories, How the First Letter…, test 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/t3/) - next →: [Just So Stories, How the First Letter…, test 5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/t5/) - ↑ back to [Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 1: a broken spear and a picture on birch-bark](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/)