---
title: A cartoon says "the word bus means BIG CAR in Old English!" What's t… — Borrowed words: French, Norse and Latin · tree and pragmatics
description: A cartoon says "the word bus means BIG CAR in Old English!" What's the truth? Test 6 · ★ of lesson 23 «Borrowed words: French, Norse and Latin» of the language 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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# Test 6 · ★ · Borrowed words: French, Norse and Latin

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A cartoon says "the word bus means BIG CAR in Old English!" What's the truth?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** cartoon, word bus, truth · **What happens:** say, mean, be · **To what, where:** BIG CAR · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 6 · ★ of lesson 23 «Borrowed words: French, Norse and Latin» of the language 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/language/23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin/#t6).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A cartoon says "the word bus means BIG CAR in Old English!"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:1
# text = A cartoon says "the word bus means BIG CAR in Old English!"
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	cartoon	cartoon	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
8	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	ccomp	_	_
9	BIG	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	CAR	car	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	obj	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	Old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	!	!	PUNCT	.	_	13	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: express* | present | a cartoon |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **mean** *in a quote* | present | the word bus | BIG CAR |  |  |  | in Old English | vn representation-110.1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Pivot car=Theme in english=Attribute |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* What's the truth?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:2
# text = What's the truth?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	truth	truth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the truth |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's from French "bus", meaning road

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:o1:1
# text = It's from French "bus", meaning road
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	from	from	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	French	French	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	bus	bus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	meaning	mean	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	4	advcl	_	_
10	road	road	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | french *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **mean** | gerund |  | road |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent road=Topic |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's right, Old English had buses

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:o2:1
# text = It's right, Old English had buses
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	7	punct	_	_
5	Old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	had	have	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
8	buses	bus	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **have** | past | Old English | buses |  |  |  |  | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bus=Patient |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's short for "business"

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:o3:1
# text = It's short for "business"
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	for	for	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	business	business	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | for business; short *property* | tree rules |

### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's clipped from Latin "omnibus", for everyone

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:23-borrowed-words-french-norse-and-latin:t6:o4:1
# text = It's clipped from Latin "omnibus", for everyone
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj:pass	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	clipped	clip	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	from	from	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	Latin	Latin	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
6	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	omnibus	omnibus	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
10	for	for	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	everyone	everyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Tot	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **clip** | present · passive |  | It |  | Latin |  | for everyone | 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.

<!-- /div -->

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