---
title: Identify the principal process by which dental caries is initiated. — Sugar, teeth and the dentist · tree and pragmatics
description: Identify the principal process by which dental caries is initiated. Exam question 1 of lesson 24 «Sugar, teeth and the dentist» of the medicine 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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# Exam question 1 · Sugar, teeth and the dentist

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Identify the principal process by which dental caries is initiated.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you, principal process · **What happens:** identify, initiate · **To what, where:** principal process, dental caries

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This is exam question 1 of lesson 24 «Sugar, teeth and the dentist» of the medicine 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/medicine/24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist/#e1).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist:e1:1
# text = Identify the principal process by which dental caries is initiated.
1	Identify	identify	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	principal	principal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	process	process	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	by	by	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	10	obl	_	_
7	dental	dental	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	caries	caries	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	initiated	initiate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	4	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* | the principal process |  |  |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent process=Theme |
| 2 | **initiate** | present · passive | the principal process | dental caries |  |  |  |  | vn establish-55.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent subject=Patient |

<!-- .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 -->
Mechanical abrasion from the consumption of firm fruit

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist:e1:o1:1
# text = Mechanical abrasion from the consumption of firm fruit
1	Mechanical	mechanical	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	amod	_	_
2	abrasion	abrasion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	from	from	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	consumption	consumption	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	firm	firm	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	fruit	fruit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **consume** |  |  | firm fruit |  |  |  |  | nom consumption «act transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Excessive brushing with fluoride preparations

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist:e1:o2:1
# text = Excessive brushing with fluoride preparations
1	Excessive	Excessive	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
2	brushing	brush	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	1	acl	_	_
3	with	with	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	fluoride	fluoride	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	preparations	preparation	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **brush** | gerund | Excessive *not said here* |  |  |  |  | with fluoride preparations | vn floss-41.2.1 «NP V PP.instrument»: agent=Agent with preparation=Instrument |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Acid produced by plaque bacteria from dietary sugar dissolves the enamel

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist:e1:o3:1
# text = Acid produced by plaque bacteria from dietary sugar dissolves the enamel
1	Acid	acid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
2	produced	produce	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	acl	_	_
3	by	by	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	plaque	plaque	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	bacteria	bacterium	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl:agent	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	dietary	dietary	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	sugar	sugar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
9	dissolves	dissolve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	enamel	enamel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **produce** | participle |  | Acid *not said here* |  | dietary sugar |  |  | vn create-26.4 «NP V NP PP.material»: agent=Agent from sugar=Material |
| 2 | **dissolve** | present | Acid | the enamel |  |  |  |  | vn break-45.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent enamel=Patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The consumption of milk

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:24-sugar-teeth-and-the-dentist:e1:o4:1
# text = The consumption of milk
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	consumption	consumption	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	milk	milk	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **consume** |  |  | milk |  |  |  |  | nom consumption «act transitive»: of=patient |

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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.

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