---
title: «my mate says ethiopia was a british colony» What is right? — Africa: countries and capitals · tree and pragmatics
description: «my mate says ethiopia was a british colony» What is right? Test 9 of lesson 13 «Africa: countries and capitals» of the geography 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 9 · Africa: countries and capitals

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«my mate says ethiopia was a british colony» What is right?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** mate, ethiopia, british colony · **What happens:** say, be · **To what, where:** british colony · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 9 of lesson 13 «Africa: countries and capitals» of the geography 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/geography/13-africa-countries-and-capitals/#t9).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:13-africa-countries-and-capitals:t9:1
# text = «my mate says ethiopia was a british colony» What is right?
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	my	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
3	mate	mate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	ethiopia	ethiopia	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
6	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	british	British	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	colony	colony	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	9	punct	_	_
11	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	13	nsubj	_	_
12	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	13	cop	_	_
13	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | present | my mate |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is a** *in a quote* | past | ethiopia | a british colony |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **is** | present | a british colony |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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 · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
No, Ethiopia stayed independent apart from an Italian occupation from 1936 to 1941

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:13-africa-countries-and-capitals:t9:o1:1
# text = No, Ethiopia stayed independent apart from an Italian occupation from 1936 to 1941
1	No	no	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Neg	4	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	Ethiopia	Ethiopia	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	stayed	stay	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	independent	independent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	xcomp	_	_
6	apart	apart	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
7	from	from	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
8	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	Italian	Italian	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	occupation	occupation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
11	from	from	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	1936	1936	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	4	obl	_	_
13	to	to	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
14	1941	1941	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	12	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stay** | past | Ethiopia |  |  | a Italian occupation |  | from 1936 to 1941; apart, independent *property* | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Yes, Britain ruled it for 100 years, from Addis Ababa

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:13-africa-countries-and-capitals:t9:o2:1
# text = Yes, Britain ruled it for 100 years, from Addis Ababa
1	Yes	yes	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Pos	4	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	Britain	Britain	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	ruled	rule	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	obj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	100	100	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	8	nummod	_	_
8	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
10	from	from	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	Addis	Addis	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	Ababa	Ababa	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **rule** | past | Britain | it |  | Addis Ababa | year |  | vn dub-29.3.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
No, it was part of Egypt until the Second World War ended in 1945

<!-- fold The tree, 14 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:13-africa-countries-and-capitals:t9:o3:1
# text = No, it was part of Egypt until the Second World War ended in 1945
1	No	no	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Neg	5	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
4	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	part	part	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	nsubj	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	Egypt	Egypt	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
8	until	until	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
10	Second	Second	ADJ	NNP	Degree=Pos|NumForm=Word|NumType=Ord	12	amod	_	_
11	World	World	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	War	War	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	13	obl	_	_
13	ended	end	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	1945	1945	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	13	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | it | part |  |  |  | of Egypt | tree rules |
| 2 | **end** | past | part |  |  | 1945 | until the Second World War |  | vn stop-55.4-1-1 «NP.eventuality V»: agent=Eventuality |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Yes, it was French until 1960

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:13-africa-countries-and-capitals:t9:o4:1
# text = Yes, it was French until 1960
1	Yes	yes	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Pos	5	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
4	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	French	French	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
6	until	until	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	1960	1960	NUM	CD	NumForm=Digit|NumType=Card	5	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | past | it |  |  |  | until 1960 | french *property* | 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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