---
title: Ascertain the meaning of "livre" when preceded by the feminine artic… — Le, la, un, une: every word is a boy o… · tree and pragmatics
description: Ascertain the meaning of "livre" when preceded by the feminine article une. Exam question 4 of lesson 25 «Le, la, un, une: every word is a boy or a girl» of the French course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was wrong
---

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# Exam question 4 · Le, la, un, une: every word is a boy or a girl

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ascertain the meaning of "livre" when preceded by the feminine article une.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you · **What happens:** ascertain, precede, mean · **To what, where:** meaning, livre

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 4 of lesson 25 «Le, la, un, une: every word is a boy or a girl» of the French 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/french/25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl/#e4).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl:e4:1
# text = Ascertain the meaning of "livre" when preceded by the feminine article une.
1	Ascertain	ascertain	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	meaning	meaning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	livre	livre	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	9	advmod	_	_
9	preceded	precede	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	acl	_	_
10	by	by	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
12	feminine	feminine	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
13	article	article	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	compound	_	_
14	une	une	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ascertain** | imperative | you *not said here* | the meaning of livre |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent meaning=Topic |
| 2 | **precede** | participle |  |  |  |  |  | by the feminine article une | vn contiguous\_location-47.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme |
| 3 | **mean** |  |  | livre |  |  |  |  | nom meaning «communication transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- .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 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A library

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl:e4:o1:1
# text = A library
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	library	library	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A book

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl:e4:o2:1
# text = A book
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	book	book	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A pound

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl:e4:o3:1
# text = A pound
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	pound	pound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A letter

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:25-le-la-un-une-every-word-is-a-boy-or-a-girl:e4:o4:1
# text = A letter
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

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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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