---
title: Why must a cat scratch be washed even if it is small? — Understanding cats · tree and pragmatics
description: Why must a cat scratch be washed even if it is small? Test 9 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 right.
---

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# Test 9 · Understanding cats

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Why must a cat scratch be washed even if it is small?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 2 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** scratch · **What happens:** wash, be · **To what, where:** cat scratch

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This is test 9 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/#t9).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t9:1
# text = Why must a cat scratch be washed even if it is small?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
2	must	must	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	7	aux	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	cat	cat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	scratch	scratch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj:pass	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	washed	wash	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
8	even	even	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
9	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
11	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
12	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	7	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **wash** | must · passive |  | a cat scratch |  |  |  |  | vn floss-41.2.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |
| 2 | **is** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | scratch |  |  |  |  | small *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Small scratches never matter at all

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t9:o1:1
# text = Small scratches never matter at all
1	Small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	scratches	scratch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	matter	matter	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **matter** | present | Small scratches |  |  | all |  |  | vn matter-91 «NP V»: agent=Stimulus |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cat scratches can carry germs and get infected

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t9:o2:1
# text = Cat scratches can carry germs and get infected
1	Cat	cat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	scratches	scratch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
3	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
4	carry	carry	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
7	get	get	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	4	conj	_	_
8	infected	infect	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **carry** | can | Cat scratches | germs |  |  |  |  | vn carry-11.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent germ=Theme |
| 2 | **get** | infinitive | Cat scratches *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer clause=Stimulus |
| 3 | **infect** | participle | Cat scratches *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn fill-9.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Cat claws contain poison

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t9:o3:1
# text = Cat claws contain poison
1	Cat	cat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	compound	_	_
2	claws	claw	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
3	contain	contain	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	poison	poison	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **contain** | present | Cat claws | poison |  |  |  |  | vn comprise-107.2-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot poison=Theme |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It will turn into a big scar if you don't wash it

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:23-understanding-cats:t9:o4:1
# text = It will turn into a big scar if you don't wash it
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	turn	turn	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	into	into	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	big	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	scar	scar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
9	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
10	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	12	advmod	_	_
12	wash	wash	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	advcl	_	_
13	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **turn** | future | It |  |  | a big scar |  |  | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP V PP.trajectory»: agent=Theme into scar=Trajectory |
| 2 | **not** **wash** *a condition, not said to happen* | present · do-support | you | scar |  |  |  |  | vn floss-41.2.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=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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