--- title: Identify the principal reason why declining to participate in an act… — Standing by a friend · tree and pragmatics description: Identify the principal reason why declining to participate in an act of revenge is prudent. Exam question 2 of lesson 370 «Standing by a friend» 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/370-standing-by-a-friend/e2/) [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/) / [Standing by a friend](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/370-standing-by-a-friend/) / e2 # Exam question 2 · Standing by a friend Identify the principal reason why declining to participate in an act of revenge is prudent. **Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you, declining, revenge · **What happens:** identify, decline, not participate, be, act · **To what, where:** principal reason This is exam question 2 of lesson 370 «Standing by a friend» of the everyday 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/everyday/370-standing-by-a-friend/#e2). ## The question {#question} ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:370-standing-by-a-friend:e2:1 # text = Identify the principal reason why declining to participate in an act of revenge is prudent. 1 Identify identify VERB VB Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 2 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 4 det _ _ 3 principal principal ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 4 amod _ _ 4 reason reason NOUN NN Number=Sing 1 obj _ _ 5 why why ADV WRB PronType=Int 15 advmod _ _ 6 declining decline VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 15 csubj _ _ 7 to to PART TO _ 8 mark _ _ 8 participate participate VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 6 xcomp _ _ 9 in in ADP IN _ 11 case _ _ 10 an a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 11 det _ _ 11 act act NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 obl _ _ 12 of of ADP IN _ 13 case _ _ 13 revenge revenge NOUN NN Number=Sing 11 nmod _ _ 14 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 15 cop _ _ 15 prudent prudent ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 1 parataxis _ SpaceAfter=No 16 . . PUNCT . _ 1 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* | the principal reason | | | | | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent reason=Theme | | 2 | **decline** | gerund | | | | | | | vn reject-77.2 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Agent clause=Theme | | 3 | **not** **participate** | to-infinitive | | | | | | in a act of revenge | vn cooperate-73.1-2 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent in act=Theme | | 4 | **is** | present | declining | | | | | prudent *property* | tree rules | | 5 | **act** | | revenge | | | | | | nom act «communication intransitive»: of=agent | 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} Declining necessarily terminates the friendship ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:370-standing-by-a-friend:e2:o1:1 # text = Declining necessarily terminates the friendship 1 Declining decline VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 3 csubj _ _ 2 necessarily necessarily ADV RB _ 1 advmod _ _ 3 terminates terminate VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 4 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 5 det _ _ 5 friendship friendship NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **decline** | gerund | | | | | | necessarily *property* | vn calibratable\_cos-45.6.1-1 «NP.attribute V»: agent=Attribute | | 2 | **terminate** | present | Declining | the friendship | | | | | vn fire-10.10 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent friendship=Theme | ### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2} Revenge tends to precipitate further conflict ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:370-standing-by-a-friend:e2:o2:1 # text = Revenge tends to precipitate further conflict 1 Revenge revenge NOUN NN Number=Sing 2 nsubj _ _ 2 tends tend VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 to to PART TO _ 4 mark _ _ 4 precipitate precipitate VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 2 xcomp _ _ 5 further far ADV RBR Degree=Cmp 6 advmod _ _ 6 conflict conflict NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 obj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **tend** | present | Revenge | | | | | | tree rules | | 2 | **precipitate** | to-infinitive | Revenge *not said here* | conflict | | | | | tree rules | ### Option 3 {#o3} Revenge invariably concludes a dispute entirely ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:370-standing-by-a-friend:e2:o3:1 # text = Revenge invariably concludes a dispute entirely 1 Revenge revenge NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 nsubj _ _ 2 invariably invariably ADV RB _ 3 advmod _ _ 3 concludes conclude VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 4 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 5 det _ _ 5 dispute dispute NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 obj _ _ 6 entirely entirely ADV RB _ 3 advmod _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **conclude** | present | Revenge | a dispute | | | | entirely, invariably *property* | vn deduce-97.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent dispute=Theme | ### Option 4 {#o4} Revenge is permitted solely outside school premises ```conllu # sent_id = question:everyday:370-standing-by-a-friend:e2:o4:1 # text = Revenge is permitted solely outside school premises 1 Revenge revenge NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 nsubj:pass _ _ 2 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 3 aux:pass _ _ 3 permitted permit VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 0 root _ _ 4 solely solely ADV RB _ 3 advmod _ _ 5 outside outside ADP IN _ 7 case _ _ 6 school school NOUN NN Number=Sing 7 compound _ _ 7 premises premise NOUN NNS Number=Plur 3 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **permit** | present · passive | | Revenge | | school premises | | solely *property* | vn admit-64.3-1 «NP V NP PP.location»: subject=Theme outside premise=Location | **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: [Standing by a friend, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/370-standing-by-a-friend/e1/) - next →: [Standing by a friend, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/370-standing-by-a-friend/e3/) - ↑ back to [Standing by a friend](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/370-standing-by-a-friend/)