---
title: Lín says he's coming "mǎshàng" from his game. Twenty minutes later h… — Today, tomorrow, now, later · tree and pragmatics
description: Lín says he's coming "mǎshàng" from his game. Twenty minutes later he's still playing. What's the joke? Test 2 of lesson 21 «Today, tomorrow, now, later» of the Chinese street course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice w
---

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# Test 2 · Today, tomorrow, now, later

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Lín says he's coming "mǎshàng" from his game. Twenty minutes later he's still playing. What's the joke?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Lín, joke · **What happens:** say, come, play, be · **To what, where:** mǎshàng, game · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 2 of lesson 21 «Today, tomorrow, now, later» of the Chinese street 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/chinese-street/21-today-tomorrow-now-later/#t2).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Lín says he's coming "mǎshàng" from his game.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:1
# text = Lín says he's coming "mǎshàng" from his game.
1	Lín	Lín	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	coming	come	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	ccomp	_	_
6	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	mǎshàng	mǎshàng	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	7	punct	_	_
9	from	from	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	game	game	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | Lín |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **come** | present · progressive | Lín | mǎshàng |  | Lín's game |  |  | vn escape-51.1-1 «NP V PP.initial\_location»: agent=Theme from game=Initial\_Location |

<!-- .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:* Twenty minutes later he's still playing.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:2
# text = Twenty minutes later he's still playing.
1	Twenty	twenty	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	2	nummod	_	_
2	minutes	minute	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl:unmarked	_	_
3	later	late	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	7	advmod	_	_
4	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
6	still	still	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
7	playing	play	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **play** | present · progressive | Lín |  |  |  | still | late *property* | vn performance-26.7-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* What's the joke?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:3
# text = What's the joke?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	joke	joke	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the joke |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He meant "yesterday", by mistake

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:o1:1
# text = He meant "yesterday", by mistake
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	meant	mean	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	yesterday	yesterday	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
7	by	by	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	mistake	mistake	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
```

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

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
mǎshàng really means twenty minutes exactly

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:o2:1
# text = mǎshàng really means twenty minutes exactly
1	mǎshàng	mǎshàng	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	3	csubj	_	_
2	really	really	ADV	RB	_	1	advmod	_	_
3	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	twenty	twenty	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	5	nummod	_	_
5	minutes	minute	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
6	exactly	exactly	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mǎshàng** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | present | mǎshàng |  |  |  | minute | exactly *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
mǎshàng means "never"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:o3:1
# text = mǎshàng means "never"
1	mǎshàng	mǎshàng	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	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	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | mǎshàng |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent never=Topic |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
From a kid at a screen, mǎshàng stretches

```conllu
# sent_id = question:chinese-street:21-today-tomorrow-now-later:t2:o4:1
# text = From a kid at a screen, mǎshàng stretches
1	From	from	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	screen	screen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
8	mǎshàng	mǎshàng	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	stretches	stretch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	conj	_	_
```

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

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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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