---
title: A Liverpool lad says "The match – our kid's first – was boss." ("Bos… — Brackets, dashes, colons, semicolons a… · tree and pragmatics
description: A Liverpool lad says "The match – our kid's first – was boss." ("Boss" means great.) Lift out the part between the dashes. What is left? Test 10 · ★★★ of lesson 36 «Brackets, dashes, colons, semicolons and hyphens» of the English course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmati
---

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# Test 10 · ★★★ · Brackets, dashes, colons, semicolons and hyphens

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A Liverpool lad says "The match – our kid's first – was boss." ("Boss" means great.) Lift out the part between the dashes. What is left?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Liverpool lad, Boss, you · **What happens:** say, be, mean, lift out, leave · **To what, where:** match, boss, part, dashes · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 10 · ★★★ of lesson 36 «Brackets, dashes, colons, semicolons and hyphens» 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/36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens/#t10).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A Liverpool lad says "The match – our kid's first – was boss."

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:1
# text = A Liverpool lad says "The match – our kid's first – was boss."
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	Liverpool	Liverpool	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	lad	lad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	match	match	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
8	–	-	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
9	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	's	's	PART	POS	_	10	case	_	_
12	first	first	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	7	acl:relcl	_	_
13	–	-	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	15	cop	_	_
15	boss	boss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | a Liverpool lad | the match |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent match=Topic |
| 2 | **is a** *in a quote* | past |  | boss |  |  |  |  | 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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* ("Boss" means great.)

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:2
# text = ("Boss" means great.)
1	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	Boss	boss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	3	punct	_	_
5	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	great	great	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	5	punct	_	_
```

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

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* Lift out the part between the dashes.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:3
# text = Lift out the part between the dashes.
1	Lift	lift	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	out	out	ADP	RP	_	1	compound:prt	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	between	between	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	dashes	dash	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **lift out** | imperative | you *not said here* | the part |  | the dashes |  |  | vn put\_direction-9.4 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent part=Theme between dash=Destination |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 4:* What is left?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:4
# text = What is left?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	left	leave	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leave** | present · passive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The match our kid's first.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:o1:1
# text = The match our kid's first.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	match	match	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	's	PART	POS	_	4	case	_	_
6	first	first	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	2	amod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

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

### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The match was boss.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:o2:1
# text = The match was boss.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	match	match	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
4	boss	boss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

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

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Our kid's first was boss.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:o3:1
# text = Our kid's first was boss.
1	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	first	first	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	6	amod	_	_
5	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
6	boss	boss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past |  | Our kid's first boss |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Was boss.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:36-brackets-dashes-colons-semicolons-and-hyphens:t10:o4:1
# text = Was boss.
1	Was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	cop	_	_
2	boss	boss	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past |  | boss |  |  |  |  | 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 -->

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