---
title: The teams were picked by names from a hat. "Bad team? That's the luc… — Soft words for hard things: religion a… · tree and pragmatics
description: The teams were picked by names from a hat. "Bad team? That's the luck of the draw, mate." What is meant? Test 8 of lesson 32 «Soft words for hard things: religion and fate and failure and mistakes» of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the ques
---

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# Test 8 · Soft words for hard things: religion and fate and failure…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The teams were picked by names from a hat. "Bad team? That's the luck of the draw, mate." What is meant?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 2 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** names, That · **What happens:** pick, be, mean · **To what, where:** teams, luck

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 8 of lesson 32 «Soft words for hard things: religion and fate and failure and mistakes» of the euphemisms 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/euphemisms/32-religion-fate-failure/#t8).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* The teams were picked by names from a hat. "

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:1
# text = The teams were picked by names from a hat. "
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	teams	team	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj:pass	_	_
3	were	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux:pass	_	_
4	picked	pick	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
5	by	by	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	names	name	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
7	from	from	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	hat	hat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pick** | past · passive | names from a hat | the teams |  |  |  |  | vn chew-39.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent subject=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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* Bad team?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:2
# text = Bad team?
1	Bad	bad	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	team	team	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

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

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* That's the luck of the draw, mate."

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:3
# text = That's the luck of the draw, mate."
1	That	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	luck	luck	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	draw	draw	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	mate	mate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
```

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

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

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:4
# text = What is meant?
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	meant	mean	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 | **mean** | present · passive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Topic |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
You should have cheated

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:o1:1
# text = You should have cheated
1	You	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	should	should	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	have	have	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	aux	_	_
4	cheated	cheat	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cheat** | should · perfect | You |  |  |  |  |  | vn cheat-10.6.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It was chance, not anyone's fault

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:o2:1
# text = It was chance, not anyone's fault
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	chance	chance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
5	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	_
6	anyone	anyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	8	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	's	's	PART	POS	_	6	case	_	_
8	fault	fault	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | It | chance and anyone's fault |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **fault** |  | anyone |  |  |  |  |  | nom fault «act transitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
You drew the worst picture

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:o3:1
# text = You drew the worst picture
1	You	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	drew	draw	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	worst	bad	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	5	amod	_	_
5	picture	picture	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **draw** | past | You | the worst picture |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent picture=Theme |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The captain chose you on purpose

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:32-religion-fate-failure:t8:o4:1
# text = The captain chose you on purpose
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	captain	captain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	chose	choose	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	3	obj	_	_
5	on	on	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	purpose	purpose	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **choose** | past | the captain | you |  | purpose |  |  | vn get-13.5.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent you=Theme |

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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.

<!-- /div -->

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- ← previous: [Soft words for hard things: religion a…, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/32-religion-fate-failure/t7/)
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