---
title: «erie canal, so what, it's just a ditch» Which is the best answer? — Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts · tree and pragmatics
description: «erie canal, so what, it's just a ditch» Which is the best answer? Test 10 · ★★★ of lesson 20 «Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts» 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.
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/t10/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[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/) / [Geography](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/) / [Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/) / t10

# Test 10 · ★★★ · Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
«erie canal, so what, it's just a ditch» Which is the best answer?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 2 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** canal, ditch · **What happens:** be · **To what, where:** ditch, best answer · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 10 · ★★★ of lesson 20 «Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts» 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/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/#t10).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts:t10:1
# text = «erie canal, so what, it's just a ditch» Which is the best answer?
1	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	3	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	erie	erie	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	canal	canal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	6	punct	_	_
5	so	so	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
6	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
10	just	just	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	ditch	ditch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	12	punct	_	_
14	Which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	18	nsubj	_	_
15	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	cop	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
17	best	good	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	18	amod	_	_
18	answer	answer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** *in a quote* | present | canal | a ditch and the best answer |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **be** *speech: assert* | present | a ditch and the best answer | the best answer |  |  |  |  | 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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It linked the Great Lakes to the Mississippi and made New Orleans the leading US port

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts:t10:o1:1
# text = It linked the Great Lakes to the Mississippi and made New Orleans the leading US port
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	linked	link	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	Great	great	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	Lakes	Lake	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	Mississippi	Mississippi	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	made	make	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
11	New	New	ADJ	NNP	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
12	Orleans	Orleans	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	16	det	_	_
14	leading	lead	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	16	amod	_	_
15	US	US	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	16	compound	_	_
16	port	port	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **link** | past | It | the Great Lakes |  |  |  | to the Mississippi | vn mix-22.1-2-1 «NP V NP PP.co-patient»: agent=Agent lake=Patient to mississippi=Co-Patient |
| 2 | **make** | past |  | the leading US port | New Orleans |  |  |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP NP»: agent=Asset orleans=Beneficiary port=Product |
| 3 | **lead** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn result-27.2 «NP V PP»: agent=Precondition |

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It linked the Great Lakes to the Hudson River and helped New York become the leading US port

<!-- fold The tree, 18 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts:t10:o2:1
# text = It linked the Great Lakes to the Hudson River and helped New York become the leading US port
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	linked	link	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	Great	great	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	Lakes	Lake	PROPN	NNPS	Number=Plur	2	obj	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	Hudson	Hudson	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	River	River	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
11	helped	help	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
12	New	New	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	13	flat	_	_
13	York	York	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	obj	_	_
14	become	become	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	11	xcomp	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
16	leading	lead	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	18	amod	_	_
17	US	US	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	18	compound	_	_
18	port	port	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **link** | past | It | the Great Lakes |  |  |  | to the Hudson River | vn mix-22.1-2-1 «NP V NP PP.co-patient»: agent=Agent lake=Patient to river=Co-Patient |
| 2 | **help** | past |  | New York |  |  |  |  | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Agent york=Beneficiary clause=Theme |
| 3 | **become** | infinitive | New York *not said here* | the leading US port |  |  |  |  | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient |
| 4 | **lead** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn result-27.2 «NP V PP»: agent=Precondition |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It was just a small ditch that nobody ever used, and it was filled in after a few years

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts:t10:o3:1
# text = It was just a small ditch that nobody ever used, and it was filled in after a few years
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
3	just	just	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	ditch	ditch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
7	that	that	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
8	nobody	nobody	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	10	nsubj	_	_
9	ever	ever	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	10	advmod	_	_
10	used	use	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
13	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	15	nsubj:pass	_	_
14	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	15	aux:pass	_	_
15	filled	fill	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	6	acl	_	_
16	in	in	ADP	RP	_	15	compound:prt	_	_
17	after	after	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
18	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	20	det	_	_
19	few	few	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	20	amod	_	_
20	years	year	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	15	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | It | a small ditch |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **use** | participle · passive |  | a small ditch |  |  | ever |  | vn eat-39.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |
| 3 | **fill in** | past · passive | a small ditch *not said here* | ditch |  |  | year |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: subject=Patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It was a canal for carrying drinking water to New York City, not for boats

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts:t10:o4:1
# text = It was a canal for carrying drinking water to New York City, not for boats
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	canal	canal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
5	for	for	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	carrying	carry	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	acl	_	_
7	drinking	drink	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	8	amod	_	_
8	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
9	to	to	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	New	New	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	flat	_	_
11	York	York	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	City	City	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	16	punct	_	_
14	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	16	advmod	_	_
15	for	for	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	boats	boat	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | It | a canal and boats |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **carry** | gerund | a canal and boats *not said here* | drinking water | York City |  |  |  | vn carry-11.4 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent water=Theme to city=Destination |
| 3 | **drink** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- 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: [Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts, test 9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/t9/)
- next →: [Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts, test 11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/t11/)
- ↑ back to [Canals: Suez, Panama and the shortcuts](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/20-canals-suez-panama-and-the-shortcuts/)