---
title: Identify the principal meaning of the expression "headcount reductio… — Soft words for hard things: work, firi… · tree and pragmatics
description: Identify the principal meaning of the expression "headcount reduction" as employed in corporate announcements. Exam question 1 of lesson 21 «Soft words for hard things: work, firing and the economy» of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the que
---

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# Exam question 1 · Soft words for hard things: work, firing and the economy

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Identify the principal meaning of the expression "headcount reduction" as employed in corporate announcements.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you · **What happens:** identify, employ, mean · **To what, where:** principal meaning, corporate announcements, expression

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 1 of lesson 21 «Soft words for hard things: work, firing and the economy» of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. 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/euphemisms/21-work-firing-and-the-economy/#e1).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:21-work-firing-and-the-economy:e1:1
# text = Identify the principal meaning of the expression "headcount reduction" as employed in corporate announcements.
1	Identify	identify	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	principal	principal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	expression	expression	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	headcount	headcount	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	reduction	reduction	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	_
12	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	13	mark	_	_
13	employed	employ	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	advcl	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
15	corporate	corporate	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	16	amod	_	_
16	announcements	announcement	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	13	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* | the principal meaning of the expression |  |  |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent meaning=Theme |
| 2 | **employ** | participle | you *not said here* |  |  | corporate announcements |  |  | vn hire-13.5.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **mean** |  |  | the expression |  |  |  |  | nom meaning «communication transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- .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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The abbreviation of staff meetings

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:21-work-firing-and-the-economy:e1:o1:1
# text = The abbreviation of staff meetings
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	abbreviation	abbreviation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	staff	staff	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	meetings	meeting	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **abbreviate** |  |  | staff meetings |  |  |  |  | nom abbreviation «communication transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The more accurate enumeration of personnel

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:21-work-firing-and-the-economy:e1:o2:1
# text = The more accurate enumeration of personnel
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
2	more	more	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	3	advmod	_	_
3	accurate	accurate	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	enumeration	enumeration	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	personnel	personnel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **enumerate** |  |  | personnel |  |  |  |  | nom enumeration «communication transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The diminution of noise within the premises

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:21-work-firing-and-the-economy:e1:o3:1
# text = The diminution of noise within the premises
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	diminution	diminution	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	noise	noise	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	within	within	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	premises	premise	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **diminish** |  | noise |  |  |  |  | within the premises | nom diminution «process intransitive»: of=agent within=obl |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The dismissal of a number of employees

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:21-work-firing-and-the-economy:e1:o4:1
# text = The dismissal of a number of employees
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	dismissal	dismissal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	number	number	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	employees	employee	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **dismiss** |  |  | a number of employees |  |  |  |  | nom dismissal «act transitive»: of=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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- ← previous: [Soft words for hard things: work, firi…, test 13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/21-work-firing-and-the-economy/t13/)
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- ↑ back to [Soft words for hard things: work, firing and the economy](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/21-work-firing-and-the-economy/)