--- title: A teacher to a parent: "Max is a bit slow with fractions." What is t… — Soft words for hard things: failure an… · tree and pragmatics description: A teacher to a parent: "Max is a bit slow with fractions." What is the teacher saying gently? Test 9 of lesson 35 «Soft words for hard things: failure and mistakes and stupidity and madness» of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question an --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/t9/) [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/) / [Euphemisms](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/) / [Soft words for hard things: failure an…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/) / t9 # Test 9 · Soft words for hard things: failure and mistakes and stupi… A teacher to a parent: "Max is a bit slow with fractions." What is the teacher saying gently? **Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** teacher · **What happens:** be, say · **Speech:** someone speaks here This is test 9 of lesson 35 «Soft words for hard things: failure and mistakes and stupidity and madness» 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/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/#t9). ## The question {#question} *Sentence 1:* A teacher to a parent: "Max is a bit slow with fractions." ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:1 # text = A teacher to a parent: "Max is a bit slow with fractions." 1 A a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 2 det _ _ 2 teacher teacher NOUN NN Number=Sing 12 nsubj _ _ 3 to to ADP IN _ 5 case _ _ 4 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 5 det _ _ 5 parent parent NOUN NN Number=Sing 2 nmod _ SpaceAfter=No 6 : : PUNCT : _ 12 punct _ _ 7 " " PUNCT `` _ 12 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 8 Max Max PROPN NNP Number=Sing 12 nsubj _ _ 9 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 12 cop _ _ 10 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 11 det _ _ 11 bit bit NOUN NN Number=Sing 12 obl:unmarked _ _ 12 slow slow ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 0 root _ _ 13 with with ADP IN _ 14 case _ _ 14 fractions fraction NOUN NNS Number=Plur 12 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 15 . . PUNCT . _ 12 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 16 " " PUNCT '' _ 12 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** *in a quote* | present | a teacher to a parent | | | | | with fractions; a bit *obl:unmarked*; slow *property* | tree rules | 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. *Sentence 2:* What is the teacher saying gently? ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:2 # text = What is the teacher saying gently? 1 What what PRON WP PronType=Int 0 root _ _ 2 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 1 cop _ _ 3 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 4 det _ _ 4 teacher teacher NOUN NN Number=Sing 1 nsubj _ _ 5 saying say VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 4 acl _ _ 6 gently gently ADV RB _ 5 advmod _ SpaceAfter=No 7 ? ? PUNCT . _ 1 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is a** | present | the teacher | | | | | | tree rules | | 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | gerund | the teacher *not said here* | | | | | gently *property* | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent | ## The options {#options} ### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1} Max is often late for maths ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:o1:1 # text = Max is often late for maths 1 Max Max PROPN NNP Number=Sing 4 nsubj _ _ 2 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 cop _ _ 3 often often ADV RB _ 4 advmod _ _ 4 late late ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 0 root _ _ 5 for for ADP IN _ 6 case _ _ 6 maths math NOUN NNS Number=Plur 4 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | present | Max | | | | | for maths; late, often *property* | tree rules | ### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2} Max finds fractions hard ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:o2:1 # text = Max finds fractions hard 1 Max Max PROPN NNP Number=Sing 2 nsubj _ _ 2 finds find VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 fractions fraction NOUN NNS Number=Plur 2 obj _ _ 4 hard hard ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 2 xcomp _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **find** | present | Max | fractions | | | | hard *property* | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fraction=Topic | ### Option 3 {#o3} Max writes fractions slowly but well ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:o3:1 # text = Max writes fractions slowly but well 1 Max Max PROPN NNP Number=Sing 2 nsubj _ _ 2 writes write VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 fractions fraction NOUN NNS Number=Plur 2 obj _ _ 4 slowly slowly ADV RB _ 2 advmod _ _ 5 but but CCONJ CC _ 6 cc _ _ 6 well well ADV RB Degree=Pos 4 conj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **write** | present | Max | fractions | | | | slowly *property* | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fraction=Theme | ### Option 4 {#o4} Max is the best at fractions ```conllu # sent_id = question:euphemisms:35-mistakes-and-stupidity:t9:o4:1 # text = Max is the best at fractions 1 Max Max PROPN NNP Number=Sing 4 nsubj _ _ 2 is 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 best good ADJ JJS Degree=Sup 0 root _ _ 5 at at ADP IN _ 6 case _ _ 6 fractions fraction NOUN NNS Number=Plur 4 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | present | Max | | | fractions | | good *property* | tree rules | **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: [Soft words for hard things: failure an…, test 8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/t8/) - next →: [Soft words for hard things: failure an…, test 10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/t10/) - ↑ back to [Soft words for hard things: failure and mistakes and stupidity and madness](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/euphemisms/35-mistakes-and-stupidity/)