---
title: A boy from Liverpool says, "Our kid says I'm proper useless at maths… — Olympiad: thinking traps and what help… · tree and pragmatics
description: A boy from Liverpool says, "Our kid says I'm proper useless at maths cos I got one sum wrong." ("Our kid" means brother or sister.) What is wrong with the brother's claim? Test 1 · ★★★ of lesson 32 «Olympiad: thinking traps and what helps first ★★★» of the reflection course of Mova's primary school,
---

<!-- md -->
[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first/t1/)

<!-- crumbs -->
[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [questions](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/) / [Reflection](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/) / [Olympiad: thinking traps and what help…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first/) / t1

# Test 1 · ★★★ · Olympiad: thinking traps and what helps first ★★★

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A boy from Liverpool says, "Our kid says I'm proper useless at maths cos I got one sum wrong." ("Our kid" means brother or sister.) What is wrong with the brother's claim?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** boy, kid, brother · **What happens:** say, be, get, mean, claim · **To what, where:** maths, one sum, brother · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 1 · ★★★ of lesson 32 «Olympiad: thinking traps and what helps first ★★★» of the reflection 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/reflection/32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first/#t1).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* A boy from Liverpool says, "Our kid says I'm proper useless at maths cos I got one sum wrong."

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:1
# text = A boy from Liverpool says, "Our kid says I'm proper useless at maths cos I got one sum wrong."
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	boy	boy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	from	from	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	Liverpool	Liverpool	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
7	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	9	nmod:poss	_	_
9	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	_
10	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	conj	_	_
11	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	'm	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	cop	_	_
13	proper	proper	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	amod	_	_
14	useless	useless	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	ccomp	_	_
15	at	at	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	maths	math	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obl	_	_
17	cos	cos	SCONJ	IN	_	19	mark	_	_
18	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	19	nsubj	_	_
19	got	get	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	14	advcl	_	_
20	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	21	nummod	_	_
21	sum	sum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obj	_	_
22	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	19	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
24	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	14	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | a boy from Liverpool |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* *in a quote* | present | Our kid |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** *in a quote* | present | a boy from Liverpool *= boy* |  |  | maths |  | useless *property* | tree rules |
| 4 | **get** *in a quote* | past | a boy from Liverpool *= boy* | one sum |  |  |  | wrong *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer sum=Stimulus |

<!-- .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:* ("Our kid" means brother or sister.)

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:2
# text = ("Our kid" means brother or sister.)
1	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	4	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	Our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	4	nmod:poss	_	_
4	kid	kid	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	4	punct	_	_
6	means	mean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
8	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	9	cc	_	_
9	sister	sister	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mean** | present | Our kid | brother or sister |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent brother=Topic |

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 3:* What is wrong with the brother's claim?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:3
# text = What is wrong with the brother's claim?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	's	's	PART	POS	_	6	case	_	_
8	claim	claim	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | with the brother's claim; wrong *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **claim** |  | the brother |  |  |  |  |  | nom claim «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's grief, because maths can make you sad

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:o1:1
# text = It's grief, because maths can make you sad
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	grief	grief	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
5	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	8	mark	_	_
6	maths	math	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nsubj	_	_
7	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	8	aux	_	_
8	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	acl:relcl	_	_
9	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	8	obj	_	_
10	sad	sad	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | grief |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **make** | can | maths | you |  |  |  | sad *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset you=Product |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's a fair fact, since one wrong sum proves he's useless at maths

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:o2:1
# text = It's a fair fact, since one wrong sum proves he's useless at maths
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	fair	fair	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	fact	fact	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
7	since	since	SCONJ	IN	_	11	mark	_	_
8	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	10	nummod	_	_
9	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
10	sum	sum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
11	proves	prove	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
12	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	cop	_	_
14	useless	useless	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	ccomp	_	_
15	at	at	ADP	IN	_	16	case	_	_
16	maths	math	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	14	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | a fair fact |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **prove** | present | one wrong sum |  |  |  |  |  | vn declare-29.4-1-1 «NP V what S\_INF»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **is** | present | sum |  |  | maths |  | useless *property* | tree rules |

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's all-or-nothing: one wrong sum doesn't make you useless

<!-- fold The tree, 13 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:o3:1
# text = It's all-or-nothing: one wrong sum doesn't make you useless
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
3	all	all	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	7	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	5	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	nothing	nothing	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	14	punct	_	_
9	one	one	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	11	nummod	_	_
10	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	sum	sum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nsubj	_	_
12	does	do	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	14	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	14	advmod	_	_
14	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	parataxis	_	_
15	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Person=2|PronType=Prs	14	obj	_	_
16	useless	useless	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | nothing |  |  |  | all *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **not** **make** | present · do-support | one wrong sum | you |  |  |  | useless *property* | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset you=Product |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It's fortune telling about next year's maths

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first:t1:o4:1
# text = It's fortune telling about next year's maths
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	aux	_	_
3	fortune	fortune	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	telling	tell	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	0	root	_	_
5	about	about	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
6	next	next	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	's	's	PART	POS	_	7	case	_	_
9	maths	math	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **tell** *speech: assert* | present · progressive | It | next year's maths |  |  |  | about *property* | vn transfer\_mesg-37.1.1-1-1 «NP V NP.recipient»: agent=Agent math=Recipient |

<!-- 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 -->

<!-- pn -->
- ← previous: [Olympiad: reading hidden feelings in h…, exam 4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/31-olympiad-reading-hidden-feelings-in-hard-times/e4/)
- next →: [Olympiad: thinking traps and what help…, test 2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first/t2/)
- ↑ back to [Olympiad: thinking traps and what helps first ★★★](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/reflection/32-olympiad-thinking-traps-and-what-helps-first/)