---
title: Why should you never scratch your initials into a tree? — Litter and caring for nature · tree and pragmatics
description: Why should you never scratch your initials into a tree? Test 8 · ★ of lesson 239 «Litter and caring for nature» 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 8 · ★ · Litter and caring for nature

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Why should you never scratch your initials into a tree?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 3 · **The right answer:** option 3 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** you, your · **What happens:** not scratch, initial · **To what, where:** initials, tree

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This is test 8 · ★ of lesson 239 «Litter and caring for nature» 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/239-litter-and-caring-for-nature/#t8).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:239-litter-and-caring-for-nature:t8:1
# text = Why should you never scratch your initials into a tree?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	5	advmod	_	_
2	should	should	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
3	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
4	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	scratch	scratch	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	initials	initial	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	obj	_	_
8	into	into	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **scratch** | should | you | your initials |  |  |  | into a tree *result* | vn cut-21.1-1 «NP V NP PP.result»: agent=Agent initial=Patient into tree=Result |
| 2 | **initial** |  | your |  |  |  |  |  | nom initial «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

<!-- .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 -->
Trees cannot feel anything, so it is always fine

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:239-litter-and-caring-for-nature:t8:o1:1
# text = Trees cannot feel anything, so it is always fine
1	Trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	feel	feel	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	anything	anything	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
7	so	so	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	11	expl	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
10	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	11	advmod	_	_
11	fine	fine	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **feel** | can | Trees | anything |  |  |  |  | vn hunt-35.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent anything=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present | Trees *not said here* |  |  |  |  | always, fine *property* | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It makes the tree grow faster

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:239-litter-and-caring-for-nature:t8:o2:1
# text = It makes the tree grow faster
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	makes	make	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	grow	grow	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	xcomp	_	_
6	faster	fast	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	5	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **make** | present | It | the tree |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **grow** | present | the tree *not said here* |  |  |  |  | fast *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It spoils the place for others and harms the tree

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:239-litter-and-caring-for-nature:t8:o3:1
# text = It spoils the place for others and harms the tree
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	spoils	spoil	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	place	place	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	others	other	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	_
7	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
8	harms	harm	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	tree	tree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **spoil** | present | It | the place |  |  |  | for others | tree rules |
| 2 | **harm** | present |  | the tree |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Stimulus tree=Experiencer |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Only the very big old trees mind being scratched

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:239-litter-and-caring-for-nature:t8:o4:1
# text = Only the very big old trees mind being scratched
1	Only	only	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
3	very	very	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	big	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
5	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	trees	tree	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
7	mind	mind	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	being	be	AUX	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	9	aux:pass	_	_
9	scratched	scratch	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 | **mind** | present | the big old trees |  |  |  |  |  | vn care-88.1 «NP V that S»: agent=Experiencer clause=Stimulus |
| 2 | **scratch** | gerund · passive | the big old trees *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn scribble-25.2-1 «NP V» |

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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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- ← previous: [Litter and caring for nature, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/239-litter-and-caring-for-nature/t7/)
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