--- title: Why did Roman ladies pay a lot for Indian pepper? — Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our nu… · tree and pragmatics description: Why did Roman ladies pay a lot for Indian pepper? Test 6 · ★★★ of lesson 8 «Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our numbers» of the history course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was wrong. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/t6/) [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/) / [History](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/) / [Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our nu…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/) / t6 # Test 6 · ★★★ · Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our numbers Why did Roman ladies pay a lot for Indian pepper? **Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Roman ladies · **What happens:** pay · **To what, where:** lot This is test 6 · ★★★ of lesson 8 «Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our numbers» of the history 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/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/#t6). ## The question {#question} ```conllu # sent_id = question:history:8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers:t6:1 # text = Why did Roman ladies pay a lot for Indian pepper? 1 Why why ADV WRB PronType=Int 5 advmod _ _ 2 did do AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 Roman roman ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 4 amod _ _ 4 ladies lady NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 nsubj _ _ 5 pay pay VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 6 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 7 det _ _ 7 lot lot NOUN NN Number=Sing 5 obj _ _ 8 for for ADP IN _ 10 case _ _ 9 Indian Indian ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 10 amod _ _ 10 pepper pepper NOUN NN Number=Sing 5 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 11 ? ? PUNCT . _ 5 punct _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **pay** | present | Roman ladies | a lot | | | | for Indian pepper | vn pay-68-1 «NP V NP PP.theme»: agent=Agent lot=Asset for pepper=Theme | 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} Pepper was banned in India ```conllu # sent_id = question:history:8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers:t6:o1:1 # text = Pepper was banned in India 1 Pepper pepper NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 nsubj:pass _ _ 2 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 3 aux:pass _ _ 3 banned ban VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 0 root _ _ 4 in in ADP IN _ 5 case _ _ 5 India India PROPN NNP Number=Sing 3 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **ban** | past · passive | | Pepper | | India | | | vn forbid-64.4-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme | ### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice {#o2} Pepper grew everywhere in Italy, so it was a fashion ```conllu # sent_id = question:history:8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers:t6:o2:1 # text = Pepper grew everywhere in Italy, so it was a fashion 1 Pepper pepper NOUN NN Number=Sing 2 nsubj _ _ 2 grew grow VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 everywhere everywhere ADV RB PronType=Tot 2 advmod _ _ 4 in in ADP IN _ 5 case _ _ 5 Italy Italy PROPN NNP Number=Sing 2 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 6 , , PUNCT , _ 11 punct _ _ 7 so so ADV RB _ 11 advmod _ _ 8 it it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 11 nsubj _ _ 9 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 11 cop _ _ 10 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 11 det _ _ 11 fashion fashion NOUN NN Number=Sing 2 conj _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **grow** | past | Pepper | | | Italy | | everywhere *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme in italy=Location | | 2 | **is a** | past | Pepper | a fashion | | | | | tree rules | ### Option 3 {#o3} It was used as money for soldiers ```conllu # sent_id = question:history:8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers:t6:o3:1 # text = It was used as money for soldiers 1 It it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 3 nsubj:pass _ _ 2 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 3 aux:pass _ _ 3 used use VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 0 root _ _ 4 as as ADP IN _ 5 case _ _ 5 money money NOUN NN Number=Sing 3 obl _ _ 6 for for ADP IN _ 7 case _ _ 7 soldiers soldier NOUN NNS Number=Plur 3 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **use** | past · passive | | It | | | | as money; for soldiers | vn spend\_time-104 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: subject=Duration as money=Attribute | ### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4} It came from very far and was rare in Rome ```conllu # sent_id = question:history:8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers:t6:o4:1 # text = It came from very far and was rare in Rome 1 It it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 2 nsubj _ _ 2 came come VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 3 from from ADP IN _ 5 case _ _ 4 very very ADV RB _ 5 advmod _ _ 5 far far ADV RB Degree=Pos 2 obl _ _ 6 and and CCONJ CC _ 8 cc _ _ 7 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 8 cop _ _ 8 rare rare ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 2 conj _ _ 9 in in ADP IN _ 10 case _ _ 10 Rome Rome PROPN NNP Number=Sing 8 obl _ _ ``` | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **come** | past | It | | | | | | vn escape-51.1-1 «NP V PP.initial\_location»: agent=Theme from far=Initial\_Location | | 2 | **is** | past | | | | Rome | | rare *property* | tree rules | **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. - ← previous: [Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our nu…, test 5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/t5/) - next →: [Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our nu…, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/t7/) - ↑ back to [Ancient India: Ashoka, zero and our numbers](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/8-ancient-india-ashoka-zero-and-our-numbers/)