---
title: Select the response consistent with the established meaning of the p… — Soft words for hard things: the toilet… · tree and pragmatics
description: Select the response consistent with the established meaning of the phrase "to answer the call of nature". Exam question 3 of lesson 6 «Soft words for hard things: the toilet and bodily functions» of the euphemisms course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the questi
---

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# Exam question 3 · Soft words for hard things: the toilet and bodily functions

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Select the response consistent with the established meaning of the phrase "to answer the call of nature".

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you · **What happens:** select, establish, answer, mean, call · **To what, where:** response, call, phrase, nature · **Speech:** someone speaks here

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This is exam question 3 of lesson 6 «Soft words for hard things: the toilet and bodily functions» 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/6-toilet-words/#e3).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:6-toilet-words:e3:1
# text = Select the response consistent with the established meaning of the phrase "to answer the call of nature".
1	Select	select	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	response	response	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	consistent	consistent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	xcomp	_	_
5	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	established	establish	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	amod	_	_
8	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	phrase	phrase	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	_
12	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	to	to	PART	TO	_	14	mark	_	_
14	answer	answer	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	11	parataxis	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
16	call	call	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obj	_	_
17	of	of	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
18	nature	nature	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	16	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **select** | imperative | you *not said here* | the response |  |  |  | consistent *property* | vn obtain-13.5.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent response=Theme |
| 2 | **establish** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn indicate-78-1-1 «NP V NP to be NP»: agent=Pivot |
| 3 | **answer** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | to-infinitive |  | the call of nature |  |  |  |  | vn reciprocate-112-1 «NP V PP»: agent=Agent call=Eventuality |
| 4 | **mean** |  |  | the phrase |  |  |  |  | nom meaning «communication transitive»: of=patient |
| 5 | **call** *in a quote* |  |  | nature |  |  |  |  | nom call «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 -->
To respond to a telephone call outdoors

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:6-toilet-words:e3:o1:1
# text = To respond to a telephone call outdoors
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	respond	respond	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	telephone	telephone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	call	call	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	outdoors	outdoors	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **respond** *speech: other* | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | to a telephone call; outdoors *property* | vn respond-113 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent to call=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To undertake a walk in the countryside

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:6-toilet-words:e3:o2:1
# text = To undertake a walk in the countryside
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	undertake	undertake	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	walk	walk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	countryside	countryside	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **undertake** | to-infinitive |  | a walk |  | the countryside |  |  | vn begin-55.1-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent walk=Eventuality |

### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To proceed to a toilet

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:6-toilet-words:e3:o3:1
# text = To proceed to a toilet
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	proceed	proceed	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	toilet	toilet	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **proceed** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  | to a toilet | vn begin-55.1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To observe wildlife in its habitat

```conllu
# sent_id = question:euphemisms:6-toilet-words:e3:o4:1
# text = To observe wildlife in its habitat
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	observe	observe	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	wildlife	wildlife	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
4	in	in	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	habitat	habitat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **observe** | to-infinitive |  | wildlife |  | wildlife's habitat |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent wildlife=Topic |

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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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