---
title: Dad says "big boys don't cry" before stitches. What could you say? — Needles and brave faces · tree and pragmatics
description: Dad says "big boys don't cry" before stitches. What could you say? Test 3 of lesson 32 «Needles and brave faces» 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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# Test 3 · Needles and brave faces

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Dad says "big boys don't cry" before stitches. What could you say?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 2 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Dad, big boys, you · **What happens:** say, not cry · **To what, where:** stitches · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 3 of lesson 32 «Needles and brave faces» of the medicine 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/medicine/32-needles-and-brave-faces/#t3).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Dad says "big boys don't cry" before stitches.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:1
# text = Dad says "big boys don't cry" before stitches.
1	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	8	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	big	big	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	boys	boy	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nsubj	_	_
6	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	_
8	cry	cry	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	8	punct	_	_
10	before	before	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	stitches	stitch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	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 clause=Topic |
| 2 | **not** **cry** *speech: express* *in a quote* | present · do-support | big boys |  |  | stitches |  |  | vn sound\_emission-43.2 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme before stitch=Location |

<!-- .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 could you say?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:2
# text = What could you say?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	4	obj	_	_
2	could	could	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
4	say	say	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | could | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent what=Topic |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nothing, he's right about that

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:o1:1
# text = Nothing, he's right about that
1	Nothing	nothing	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
5	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
6	about	about	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	that	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	5	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Nothing |  |  |  |  | about that; right *property* | tree rules |

### Option 2 · ✓ the right answer {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It helps me to hold your hand and cry if I need

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:o2:1
# text = It helps me to hold your hand and cry if I need
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	helps	help	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	me	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	obj	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	hold	hold	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
6	your	your	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Person=2|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
7	hand	hand	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	cry	cry	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	_
10	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
11	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
12	need	need	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **help** | present | It | me |  |  |  |  | vn help-72.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Agent i=Beneficiary clause=Theme |
| 2 | **hold** | to-infinitive | me *not said here* | your hand and cry |  |  |  |  | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent hand=Theme |
| 3 | **need** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | I |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I promise I'll never cry again, Dad

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:o3:1
# text = I promise I'll never cry again, Dad
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	promise	promise	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	'll	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
5	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	6	advmod	_	_
6	cry	cry	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	ccomp	_	_
7	again	again	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
9	Dad	dad	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	vocative	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **promise** *speech: promise* | present | I |  |  |  |  | Dad *vocative* | vn promise-37.13 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 2 | **not** **cry** *speech: express* | future | I |  |  |  | again |  | vn manner\_speaking-37.3 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Stitches don't hurt anyone, so it's fine

```conllu
# sent_id = question:medicine:32-needles-and-brave-faces:t3:o4:1
# text = Stitches don't hurt anyone, so it's fine
1	Stitches	stitch	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	hurt	hurt	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	anyone	anyone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
7	so	so	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	expl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	10	cop	_	_
10	fine	fine	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **hurt** | present · do-support | Stitches | anyone |  |  |  |  | vn hurt-40.8.3-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer anyone=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present | Stitches *not said here* |  |  |  |  | fine *property* | 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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