---
title: ★★★ Dad says «It's not unlikely that it won't rain». Count the «not»… — Not unhappy and not half: litotes · tree and pragmatics
description: ★★★ Dad says «It's not unlikely that it won't rain». Count the «not»-type words: not, un-, won't. Does he think it will rain? Test 9 · ★★ of lesson 50 «Not unhappy and not half: litotes» of the language course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of e
---

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# Test 9 · ★★ · Not unhappy and not half: litotes

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
★★★ Dad says «It's not unlikely that it won't rain». Count the «not»-type words: not, un-, won't. Does he think it will rain?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 2 · **The right answer:** option 1 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** ★ Dad, it, you, Dad · **What happens:** say, not be, not rain, not count, think, rain · **To what, where:** type words · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 9 · ★★ of lesson 50 «Not unhappy and not half: litotes» 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/50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes/#t9).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* ★★★ Dad says «It's not unlikely that it won't rain».

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:1
# text = ★★★ Dad says «It's not unlikely that it won't rain».
1	★	★	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	★	★	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	★	★	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	appos	_	_
4	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
5	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	expl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
9	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
10	unlikely	unlikely	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	ccomp	_	_
11	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	15	mark	_	_
12	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	15	nsubj	_	_
13	wo	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	15	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	15	advmod	_	_
15	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | ★ Dad |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **not** **is** *in a quote* | present |  |  |  |  |  | unlikely *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **not** **rain** *in a quote* | future | it |  |  |  |  |  | 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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* Count the «not»-type words: not, un-, won't.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:2
# text = Count the «not»-type words: not, un-, won't.
1	Count	count	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
3	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	type	type	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	10	punct	_	_
10	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	1	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	un	un	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	15	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	12	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
15	wo	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	1	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	15	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **count** | imperative | you *not said here* | the type words |  |  |  |  | vn multiply-108 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent word=Theme |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* Does he think it will rain?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:3
# text = Does he think it will rain?
1	Does	do	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
2	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
3	think	think	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
5	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
6	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **think** *speech: other* | present · do-support | Dad |  |  |  |  |  | vn focus-87.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **rain** | future | it |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
No: three negatives leave one, so he thinks it probably won't rain

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:o1:1
# text = No: three negatives leave one, so he thinks it probably won't rain
1	No	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	det	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	1	punct	_	_
3	three	three	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	negatives	negative	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
5	leave	leave	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	so	so	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
9	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	thinks	think	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
11	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	obj	_	_
12	probably	probably	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
13	wo	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	15	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	15	advmod	_	_
15	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **leave** | present | no three negatives | one |  |  |  |  | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent one=Theme |
| 2 | **think** *speech: other* | present | he | it |  |  |  | rain *obl* | vn wish-62 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot it=Theme |

### Option 2 · ← Mova's choice {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Yes: three negatives always mean a big yes

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:o2:1
# text = Yes: three negatives always mean a big yes
1	Yes	yes	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Pos	6	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	6	punct	_	_
3	three	three	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	4	nummod	_	_
4	negatives	negative	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nsubj	_	_
5	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	6	advmod	_	_
6	mean	mean	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
8	big	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	yes	yes	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | three negatives | a big yes |  |  |  | always *property* | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent yes=Topic |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Yes: the word «rain» is in it, so it will rain

<!-- fold The tree, 11 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:o3:1
# text = Yes: the word «rain» is in it, so it will rain
1	Yes	yes	INTJ	UH	Polarity=Pos	10	discourse	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	10	punct	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	word	word	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	_
5	«	«	PUNCT	``	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	»	»	PUNCT	''	_	6	punct	_	_
8	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
12	so	so	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
13	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	15	nsubj	_	_
14	will	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	15	aux	_	_
15	rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	vocative	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | the word |  |  | word |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **rain** | future | it |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nobody can ever work out a sentence with three negatives

```conllu
# sent_id = question:language:50-not-unhappy-and-not-half-litotes:t9:o4:1
# text = Nobody can ever work out a sentence with three negatives
1	Nobody	nobody	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	4	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	ever	ever	ADV	RB	PronType=Ind	4	advmod	_	_
4	work	work	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	out	out	ADP	RP	_	4	compound:prt	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	sentence	sentence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
8	with	with	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	three	three	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	10	nummod	_	_
10	negatives	negative	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **work out** | can | Nobody | a sentence |  |  | ever | with three negatives | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent sentence=Topic |

<!-- 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 -->

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