---
title: Which line is "telling", not "showing"? — Putting it together: reading and writi… · tree and pragmatics
description: Which line is "telling", not "showing"? Test 4 · ★★ of lesson 54 «Putting it together: reading and writing like a writer» 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 right.
---

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# Test 4 · ★★ · Putting it together: reading and writing like a writer

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Which line is "telling", not "showing"?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** line · **What happens:** tell, not show · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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This is test 4 · ★★ of lesson 54 «Putting it together: reading and writing like a writer» 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/54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer/#t4).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer:t4:1
# text = Which line is "telling", not "showing"?
1	Which	which	DET	WDT	PronType=Int	2	det	_	_
2	line	line	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
4	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	telling	tell	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
9	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	showing	show	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	5	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **tell** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | present · progressive | which line |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **show** *in a quote* | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tom was angry.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer:t4:o1:1
# text = Tom was angry.
1	Tom	Tom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	angry	angry	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | Tom |  |  |  |  | angry *property* | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tom's face went bright red.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer:t4:o2:1
# text = Tom's face went bright red.
1	Tom	Tom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	's	PART	POS	_	1	case	_	_
3	face	face	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	went	go	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	bright	bright	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	red	red	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **go** | past | Tom's face |  |  |  |  | red *property* | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tom clenched both of his fists.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer:t4:o3:1
# text = Tom clenched both of his fists.
1	Tom	Tom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	clenched	clench	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	both	both	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	2	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	fists	fist	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **clench** | past | Tom | both |  |  |  |  | vn crane-40.3.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent both=Patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Tom slammed the door.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:54-reading-and-writing-like-a-writer:t4:o4:1
# text = Tom slammed the door.
1	Tom	Tom	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	slammed	slam	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	door	door	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **slam** | past | Tom | the door |  |  |  |  | vn spank-18.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent door=Patient |

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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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