--- title: Why do many cats scratch when someone rubs their belly? — Understanding cats · tree and pragmatics description: Why do many cats scratch when someone rubs their belly? Test 5 of lesson 23 «Understanding cats» of the everyday course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was wrong. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/23-understanding-cats/t5/) [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/) / [Everyday](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/) / [Understanding cats](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/23-understanding-cats/) / t5 # Test 5 · Understanding cats Why do many cats scratch when someone rubs their belly? **Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** many cats, someone · **What happens:** do, scratch, rub · **To what, where:** belly This is test 5 of lesson 23 «Understanding cats» of the everyday 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/everyday/23-understanding-cats/#t5). ## The question {#question} ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t5:1 # text = Why do many cats scratch when someone rubs their belly? 1 Why why ADV WRB PronType=Int 2 advmod _ _ 2 do do VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 5 advcl _ _ 3 many many ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 4 amod _ _ 4 cats cat NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 nsubj _ _ 5 scratch scratch VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 6 when when SCONJ WRB _ 8 mark _ _ 7 someone someone PRON NN Number=Sing|PronType=Ind 8 nsubj _ _ 8 rubs rub VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 5 advcl _ _ 9 their their PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 10 nmod:poss _ _ 10 belly belly NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 11 ? ? PUNCT . _ 5 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **do** | present | many cats *not said here* | | | | | | vn act-114-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 2 | **scratch** | present | many cats | | | | | | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 3 | **rub** | present | someone | cats's belly | | | | | vn spray-9.7-1 «NP V NP.theme»: agent=Agent belly=Theme | 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} The belly is where cats feel hungry ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t5:o1:1 # text = The belly is where cats feel hungry 1 The the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 2 det _ _ 2 belly belly NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 nsubj _ _ 3 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 cop _ _ 4 where where ADV WRB PronType=Int 0 root _ _ 5 cats cat NOUN NNS Number=Plur 6 nsubj _ _ 6 feel feel VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 advcl:relcl _ _ 7 hungry hungry ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 6 xcomp _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | present | the belly | | | | | where *property* | tree rules | | 2 | **feel** | present | cats | | | | | hungry *property* | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Stimulus | ### Option 2 {#o2} Cats are ticklish and laugh with their claws instead ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t5:o2:1 # text = Cats are ticklish and laugh with their claws instead 1 Cats cat NOUN NNS Number=Plur 3 nsubj _ _ 2 are be AUX VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 3 cop _ _ 3 ticklish ticklish ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 0 root _ _ 4 and and CCONJ CC _ 5 cc _ _ 5 laugh laugh VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 3 conj _ _ 6 with with ADP IN _ 8 case _ _ 7 their their PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 8 nmod:poss _ _ 8 claws claw NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 obl _ _ 9 instead instead ADV RB _ 5 advmod _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | present | Cats | | | | | ticklish *property* | tree rules | | 2 | **laugh** | present | Cats *not said here* | | | | | with Cats's claws; instead *property* | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent | ### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3} The belly is soft and cats like to protect it ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t5:o3:1 # text = The belly is soft and cats like to protect it 1 The the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 2 det _ _ 2 belly belly NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 nsubj _ _ 3 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 cop _ _ 4 soft soft ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 0 root _ _ 5 and and CCONJ CC _ 7 cc _ _ 6 cats cat NOUN NNS Number=Plur 7 nsubj _ _ 7 like like VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 conj _ _ 8 to to PART TO _ 9 mark _ _ 9 protect protect VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 7 xcomp _ _ 10 it it PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 9 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | present | the belly | | | | | soft *property* | tree rules | | 2 | **like** | present | cats | | | | | | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot clause=Theme | | 3 | **protect** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | cats *not said here* | belly | | | | | vn defend-72.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Beneficiary | ### Option 4 {#o4} Cats think the hand is a toy mouse ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t5:o4:1 # text = Cats think the hand is a toy mouse 1 Cats cat NOUN NNS Number=Plur 2 nsubj _ _ 2 think think VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 4 det _ _ 4 hand hand NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 nsubj _ _ 5 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 8 cop _ _ 6 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 8 det _ _ 7 toy toy NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 compound _ _ 8 mouse mouse NOUN NN Number=Sing 2 ccomp _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **think** *speech: other* | present | Cats | | | | | | vn focus-87.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 2 | **is a** | present | the hand | a toy mouse | | | | | 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: [Understanding cats, test 4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/23-understanding-cats/t4/) - next →: [Understanding cats, test 6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/23-understanding-cats/t6/) - ↑ back to [Understanding cats](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/23-understanding-cats/)