--- title: What would happen if every English sound had to be written with one… — Sounds and letters: how phonics starts · tree and pragmatics description: What would happen if every English sound had to be written with one letter only? Test 4 of lesson 1 «Sounds and letters: how phonics starts» of the English course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was wrong. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/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/) / [English](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/) / [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/) / t4 # Test 4 · Sounds and letters: how phonics starts What would happen if every English sound had to be written with one letter only? **Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 1 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** English sound · **What happens:** happen, have, write This is test 4 of lesson 1 «Sounds and letters: how phonics starts» of the English 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/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/#t4). ## The question {#question} ```conllu # sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:t4:1 # text = What would happen if every English sound had to be written with one letter only? 1 What what PRON WP PronType=Int 3 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 3 aux _ _ 3 happen happen VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 0 root _ _ 4 if if SCONJ IN _ 8 mark _ _ 5 every every DET DT PronType=Tot 7 det _ _ 6 English English ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 7 amod _ _ 7 sound sound NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 nsubj _ _ 8 had have VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 3 advcl _ _ 9 to to PART TO _ 11 mark _ _ 10 be be AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 11 aux:pass _ _ 11 written write VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 8 xcomp _ _ 12 with with ADP IN _ 14 case _ _ 13 one one NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 14 nummod _ _ 14 letter letter NOUN NN Number=Sing 11 obl _ _ 15 only only ADV RB _ 11 advmod _ SpaceAfter=No 16 ? ? PUNCT . _ 3 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **happen** | would | | | | | | | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme | | 2 | **have** *a condition, not said to happen* | past | every English sound | | | | | | tree rules | | 3 | **write** | to-infinitive · passive | every English sound *not said here* | | | | | with one letter | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V» | 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 · ✓ the right answer {#o1} We would need more letters than the 26 we have ```conllu # sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:t4:o1:1 # text = We would need more letters than the 26 we have 1 We we PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs 3 nsubj _ _ 2 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 3 aux _ _ 3 need need VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 0 root _ _ 4 more more ADJ JJR Degree=Cmp 5 amod _ _ 5 letters letter NOUN NNS Number=Plur 3 obj _ _ 6 than than ADP IN _ 8 case _ _ 7 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 8 det _ _ 8 26 26 NUM CD NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card 3 obl _ _ 9 we we PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs 10 nsubj _ _ 10 have have VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 3 parataxis _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **need** | would | We | more letters | | | | than the 26 | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot letter=Theme | | 2 | **have** | present | we | | | | | | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent | ### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice {#o2} All words would become exactly three letters long ```conllu # sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:t4:o2:1 # text = All words would become exactly three letters long 1 All all DET DT PronType=Tot 2 det _ _ 2 words word NOUN NNS Number=Plur 4 nsubj _ _ 3 would would AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 4 become become VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 0 root _ _ 5 exactly exactly ADV RB _ 6 advmod _ _ 6 three three NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 7 nummod _ _ 7 letters letter NOUN NNS Number=Plur 8 obl:unmarked _ _ 8 long long ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 4 xcomp _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **become** | would | all words | | | | | long *property* | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient | ### Option 3 {#o3} Nothing, 26 letters cover every sound already ```conllu # sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:t4:o3:1 # text = Nothing, 26 letters cover every sound already 1 Nothing nothing PRON NN Number=Sing|PronType=Neg 5 nsubj _ SpaceAfter=No 2 , , PUNCT , _ 1 punct _ _ 3 26 26 NUM CD NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card 4 nummod _ _ 4 letters letter NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 nsubj _ _ 5 cover cover VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 6 every every DET DT PronType=Tot 7 det _ _ 7 sound sound NOUN NN Number=Sing 5 obj _ _ 8 already already ADV RB _ 5 advmod _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **cover** | present | Nothing | every sound | | | | | vn fill-9.8-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme sound=Destination | ### Option 4 {#o4} We could drop half the alphabet ```conllu # sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:t4:o4:1 # text = We could drop half the alphabet 1 We we PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs 3 nsubj _ _ 2 could could AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 3 aux _ _ 3 drop drop VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 0 root _ _ 4 half half DET PDT NumForm=Word|NumType=Frac|PronType=Ind 6 det:predet _ _ 5 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 6 det _ _ 6 alphabet alphabet NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **drop** | could | We | half alphabet | | | | | vn put\_direction-9.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent alphabet=Theme | **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: [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts, test 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/t3/) - next →: [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts, test 5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/t5/) - ↑ back to [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/)