---
title: A huge elephant suddenly steps back when a leaf blows across its fee… — Wild animals and tall tales · tree and pragmatics
description: A huge elephant suddenly steps back when a leaf blows across its feet. What does that suggest? Test 10 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Wild animals and tall tales» of the myths course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was right.
---

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# Test 10 · ★★ · Wild animals and tall tales

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A huge elephant suddenly steps back when a leaf blows across its feet. What does that suggest?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** huge elephant, leaf, that · **What happens:** step back, blow, suggest · **To what, where:** feet

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 10 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Wild animals and tall tales» of the myths 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/myths/8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales/#t10).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A huge elephant suddenly steps back when a leaf blows across its feet.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:1
# text = A huge elephant suddenly steps back when a leaf blows across its feet.
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	huge	huge	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	elephant	elephant	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
4	suddenly	suddenly	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	steps	step	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
6	back	back	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
7	when	when	SCONJ	WRB	_	10	mark	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	leaf	leaf	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	_
10	blows	blow	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	advcl	_	_
11	across	across	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	13	nmod:poss	_	_
13	feet	foot	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **step back** | present | a huge elephant |  |  |  |  | suddenly *property* | vn run-51.3.2 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **blow** | present | a leaf |  |  | leaf's feet |  |  | vn split-23.2 «NP V apart»: agent=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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* What does that suggest?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:2
# text = What does that suggest?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	4	obj	_	_
2	does	do	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	that	that	PRON	DT	Number=Sing|PronType=Dem	4	nsubj	_	_
4	suggest	suggest	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 | **suggest** *speech: suggest* | present · do-support | that |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1-1 «NP V NP.topic»: agent=Agent what=Topic |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Elephants can startle at sudden small movements, not mice in particular

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:o1:1
# text = Elephants can startle at sudden small movements, not mice in particular
1	Elephants	elephant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	startle	startle	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	at	at	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	sudden	sudden	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	small	small	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	movements	movement	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
9	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
10	mice	mouse	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	conj	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	particular	particular	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **startle** | can | Elephants |  |  | sudden small movements and mice |  | in particular | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Elephants can't see their feet at all

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:o2:1
# text = Elephants can't see their feet at all
1	Elephants	elephant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
2	ca	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	see	see	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	feet	foot	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
7	at	at	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **see** | can | Elephants | Elephants's feet |  | all |  |  | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer foot=Stimulus |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Elephants are terrified only of mice, because mice can climb up their trunks

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:o3:1
# text = Elephants are terrified only of mice, because mice can climb up their trunks
1	Elephants	elephant	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	nsubj	_	_
2	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	terrified	terrified	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	only	only	ADV	RB	_	6	advmod	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	mice	mouse	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
9	mice	mouse	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	nsubj	_	_
10	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	11	aux	_	_
11	climb	climb	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	conj	_	_
12	up	up	ADP	RP	_	11	compound:prt	_	_
13	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	14	nmod:poss	_	_
14	trunks	trunk	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | Elephants |  |  |  |  | of mice; terrified *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **climb up** | can | mice | mice's trunks |  |  |  |  | vn run-51.3.2 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Initial\_Location trunk=Theme |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The leaf was a hidden mouse

```conllu
# sent_id = question:myths:8-wild-animals-and-tall-tales:t10:o4:1
# text = The leaf was a hidden mouse
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	leaf	leaf	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
3	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	hidden	hidden	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	mouse	mouse	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | past | the leaf | a hidden mouse |  |  |  |  | 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.

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