---
title: Which of the following statements most accurately characterises a di… — Plate tectonics · tree and pragmatics
description: Which of the following statements most accurately characterises a divergent plate boundary such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge? Exam question 2 of lesson 42 «Plate tectonics» of the geography course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova
---

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# Exam question 2 · Plate tectonics

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Which of the following statements most accurately characterises a divergent plate boundary such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **What happens:** follow, characteris · **To what, where:** divergent plate boundary

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 42 «Plate tectonics» of the geography 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/geography/42-plate-tectonics/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:42-plate-tectonics:e2:1
# text = Which of the following statements most accurately characterises a divergent plate boundary such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge?
1	Which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	8	nsubj	_	_
2	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	following	follow	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	amod	_	_
5	statements	statement	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	_
6	most	most	ADV	RBS	Degree=Sup	7	advmod	_	_
7	accurately	accurately	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	characterises	characteris	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
10	divergent	divergent	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
11	plate	plate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	compound	_	_
12	boundary	boundary	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	_
13	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=ADP	17	case	_	_
14	as	as	ADP	IN	_	13	fixed	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
16	Mid-Atlantic	Mid-Atlantic	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	17	compound	_	_
17	Ridge	Ridge	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	12	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **follow** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **characteris** | present |  | a divergent plate boundary |  |  |  | of the following statements; such the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; accurately *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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Two continental masses collide and form mountains

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:42-plate-tectonics:e2:o1:1
# text = Two continental masses collide and form mountains
1	Two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	3	nummod	_	_
2	continental	continental	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	masses	mass	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	collide	collide	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	form	form	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	conj	_	_
7	mountains	mountain	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **collide** | present | Two continental masses |  |  |  |  |  | vn bump-18.4-1 «NP V together»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **form** | present | Two continental masses *not said here* | mountains |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location mountain=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
One plate descends beneath another into a trench

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:42-plate-tectonics:e2:o2:1
# text = One plate descends beneath another into a trench
1	One	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	2	nummod	_	_
2	plate	plate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	descends	descend	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	beneath	beneath	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	another	another	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	3	obl	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	trench	trench	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **descend** | present | One plate |  |  | a trench |  | beneath another | vn meander-47.7-1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme into trench=Location |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Plates separate and ascending magma forms new crust

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:42-plate-tectonics:e2:o3:1
# text = Plates separate and ascending magma forms new crust
1	Plates	plate	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	separate	separate	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
4	ascending	ascend	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	csubj	_	_
5	magma	magma	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	forms	form	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
7	new	new	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	crust	crust	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **separate** | present | Plates |  |  |  |  |  | vn separate-23.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **ascend** | gerund |  | magma |  |  |  |  | vn escape-51.1-1-3 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme magma=Trajectory |
| 3 | **form** | present | ascending | new crust |  |  |  |  | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location crust=Theme |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Plates move laterally and crust is neither formed nor destroyed

```conllu
# sent_id = question:geography:42-plate-tectonics:e2:o4:1
# text = Plates move laterally and crust is neither formed nor destroyed
1	Plates	plate	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	nsubj	_	_
2	move	move	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	laterally	laterally	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	_
4	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
5	crust	crust	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj:pass	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	aux:pass	_	_
7	neither	neither	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	formed	form	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	conj	_	_
9	nor	nor	CCONJ	CC	Polarity=Neg	10	cc	_	_
10	destroyed	destroy	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	8	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **move** | present | Plates |  |  |  |  | laterally *property* | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP.theme V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **form** | present · passive |  | crust |  |  |  | neither *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: subject=Theme |
| 3 | **destroy** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn destroy-44 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

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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.

<!-- /div -->

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- ← previous: [Plate tectonics, exam 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/42-plate-tectonics/e1/)
- next →: [Plate tectonics, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/geography/42-plate-tectonics/e3/)
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