---
title: Identify the function of the cédille when placed beneath the letter… — Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends · tree and pragmatics
description: Identify the function of the cédille when placed beneath the letter c before a, o or u. Exam question 2 of lesson 3 «Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends» 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 2 · Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Identify the function of the cédille when placed beneath the letter c before a, o or u.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you · **What happens:** identify, place · **To what, where:** function

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 3 «Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends» 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/3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends:e2:1
# text = Identify the function of the cédille when placed beneath the letter c before a, o or u.
1	Identify	identify	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	function	function	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	cédille	cédille	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
7	when	when	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	8	advmod	_	_
8	placed	place	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	advcl	_	_
9	beneath	beneath	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
11	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	c	c	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
13	before	before	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
14	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	16	det	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
16	o	o	NOUN	NN	_	1	obl	_	_
17	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	u.	U.	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	16	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* | the function of the cédille |  |  | before a o or u. | beneath the letter c | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent function=Theme |
| 2 | **place** | participle | you *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn put-9.1-2 «NP V PP.destination NP»: agent=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 -->
It renders the letter wholly silent

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends:e2:o1:1
# text = It renders the letter wholly silent
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	renders	render	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	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	wholly	wholly	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
6	silent	silent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **render** | present | It | the letter |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent letter=Theme |

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It causes the letter to be pronounced as "k"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends:e2:o2:1
# text = It causes the letter to be pronounced as "k"
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	causes	cause	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	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	pronounced	pronounce	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	acl	_	_
8	as	as	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	k	k	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cause** | present | It | the letter |  |  |  |  | vn engender-27.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition letter=Patient |
| 2 | **pronounce** | to-infinitive · passive |  | the letter *not said here* |  |  |  | as k | vn dub-29.3.2 «NP V NP» |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It causes the letter to be pronounced as "s"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends:e2:o3:1
# text = It causes the letter to be pronounced as "s"
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	causes	cause	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	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	pronounced	pronounce	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	acl	_	_
8	as	as	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	s	s	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cause** | present | It | the letter |  |  |  |  | vn engender-27.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition letter=Patient |
| 2 | **pronounce** | to-infinitive · passive |  | the letter *not said here* |  |  |  | as s | vn dub-29.3.2 «NP V NP» |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It causes the letter to be doubled

```conllu
# sent_id = question:french:3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends:e2:o4:1
# text = It causes the letter to be doubled
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	causes	cause	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	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
6	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	aux:pass	_	_
7	doubled	double	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	acl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cause** | present | It | the letter |  |  |  |  | vn engender-27.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition letter=Patient |
| 2 | **double** | to-infinitive · passive |  | the letter *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V» |

<!-- div src -->

**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.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/french/3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends/e1/)
- next →: [Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/french/3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends/e3/)
- ↑ back to [Accents: é, è, ê, ç and friends](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/french/3-accents-e-e-e-c-and-friends/)