---
title: Noah's mum checks her phone at dinner. Noah: «oi, no screens, that's… — Screen-time rules and arguments · tree and pragmatics
description: Noah's mum checks her phone at dinner. Noah: «oi, no screens, that's the rule». Who is right? Test 8 · ★ of lesson 421 «Screen-time rules and arguments» 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 righ
---

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# Test 8 · ★ · Screen-time rules and arguments

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Noah's mum checks her phone at dinner. Noah: «oi, no screens, that's the rule». Who is right?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 4 · **The right answer:** option 4 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** mum, that · **What happens:** check, be · **To what, where:** phone, dinner, rule

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This is test 8 · ★ of lesson 421 «Screen-time rules and arguments» 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/421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments/#t8).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Noah's mum checks her phone at dinner.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:1
# text = Noah's mum checks her phone at dinner.
1	Noah	Noah	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	's	PART	POS	_	1	case	_	_
3	mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	checks	check	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	phone	phone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	dinner	dinner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **check** | present | Noah's mum | mum's phone |  | dinner |  |  | vn assessment-34.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent phone=Theme |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* Noah: «oi, no screens, that's the rule».

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:2
# text = Noah: «oi, no screens, that's the rule».
1	Noah	Noah	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	4	punct	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	oi	oi	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
6	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	7	det	_	_
7	screens	screen	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
9	that	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	12	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	rule	rule	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** *in a quote* | present | that | the rule |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* Who is right?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:3
# text = Who is right?
1	Who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Mum, if the message is from work or the school

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:o1:1
# text = Mum, if the message is from work or the school
1	Mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
3	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	message	message	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	work	work	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nmod	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | the message |  |  | work or the school |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Mum, rules are only for children

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:o2:1
# text = Mum, rules are only for children
1	Mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	rules	rule	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	nsubj	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
5	only	only	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	children	child	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Mum rules |  |  |  |  | for children | tree rules |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nobody, phones are not screens

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:o3:1
# text = Nobody, phones are not screens
1	Nobody	nobody	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	3	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	phones	phone	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
4	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
6	screens	screen	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **is a** | present | Nobody phones | screens |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 4 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Noah, the rule is for everyone, Mum too

```conllu
# sent_id = question:everyday:421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments:t8:o4:1
# text = Noah, the rule is for everyone, Mum too
1	Noah	Noah	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	rule	rule	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
5	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	everyone	everyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Tot	1	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	Mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	_
10	too	too	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | the rule |  |  |  |  | for everyone | tree rules |

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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: [Screen-time rules and arguments, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments/t7/)
- next →: [Screen-time rules and arguments, test 9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments/t9/)
- ↑ back to [Screen-time rules and arguments](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/everyday/421-screen-time-rules-and-arguments/)