---
title: What would happen if Max kept hearing worrying bits through the wall… — Scary things in the world: news, stran… · tree and pragmatics
description: What would happen if Max kept hearing worrying bits through the wall and never asked? Test 3 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Scary things in the world: news, strangers, war and what-ifs» of the reflection course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; 
---

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# Test 3 · ★★ · Scary things in the world: news, strangers, war and what-ifs

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What would happen if Max kept hearing worrying bits through the wall and never asked?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 4 · **The right answer:** option 4 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** Max · **What happens:** happen, keep, hear, worry, not ask · **To what, where:** worrying bits, wall

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 3 · ★★ of lesson 8 «Scary things in the world: news, strangers, war and what-ifs» 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/8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs/#t3).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs:t3:1
# text = What would happen if Max kept hearing worrying bits through the wall and never asked?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj	_	_
2	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	happen	happen	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
5	Max	Max	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
6	kept	keep	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
7	hearing	hear	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	6	xcomp	_	_
8	worrying	worry	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	9	amod	_	_
9	bits	bit	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obj	_	_
10	through	through	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	wall	wall	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
13	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
14	never	never	ADV	RB	PronType=Neg	15	advmod	_	_
15	asked	ask	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **happen** | would |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn occur-48.3-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **keep** *a condition, not said to happen* | past | Max |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **hear** | gerund | Max *not said here* | worrying bits |  | the wall |  |  | vn see-30.1-1-1 «NP V S»: agent=Experiencer bit=Stimulus |
| 4 | **worry** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V ADV-Middle»: agent=Experiencer |
| 5 | **not** **ask** *speech: ask* | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn inquire-37.1.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

<!-- .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 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
His parents' money problems would simply disappear by themselves

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs:t3:o1:1
# text = His parents' money problems would simply disappear by themselves
1	His	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	2	nmod:poss	_	_
2	parents	parent	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	'	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	money	money	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	compound	_	_
5	problems	problem	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	nsubj	_	_
6	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	8	aux	_	_
7	simply	simply	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	disappear	disappear	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
9	by	by	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	themselves	themselves	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs|Reflex=Yes	8	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **disappear** | would | money problems |  |  |  |  | by problems *= problem*; simply *property* | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
His tummy aches would go away faster all on their own

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs:t3:o2:1
# text = His tummy aches would go away faster all on their own
1	His	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
2	tummy	tummy	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	aches	ache	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	5	nsubj	_	_
4	would	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	go	go	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	away	away	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
7	faster	fast	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	5	advmod	_	_
8	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	7	conj	_	_
9	on	on	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	their	their	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	11	nmod:poss	_	_
11	own	own	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **go away** | would | His tummy aches |  |  | aches's own |  | away, fast *property* | vn occur-48.3-2 «NP V PP»: agent=Theme on own=Location |
| 2 | **ache** |  | His *= he* |  |  |  |  |  | nom ache «state intransitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He'd work out the full story by himself, bit by bit

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs:t3:o3:1
# text = He'd work out the full story by himself, bit by bit
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	3	aux	_	_
3	work	work	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
4	out	out	ADP	RP	_	3	compound:prt	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	full	full	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	story	story	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
8	by	by	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	himself	himself	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs|Reflex=Yes	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	bit	bit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
12	by	by	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
13	bit	bit	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **work out** | would | He | the full story |  |  |  | by himself *= he*; bit by bit *obl* | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent story=Topic |

### Option 4 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He'd probably keep imagining the worst on his own

```conllu
# sent_id = question:reflection:8-scary-things-in-the-world-news-strangers-war-and-what-ifs:t3:o4:1
# text = He'd probably keep imagining the worst on his own
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	'd	would	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	probably	probably	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
4	keep	keep	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	imagining	imagine	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	xcomp	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	worst	bad	ADJ	JJS	Degree=Sup	5	obj	_	_
8	on	on	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	own	own	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **keep** | would | He |  |  | his own |  | probably *property* | tree rules |
| 2 | **imagine** | gerund | He *not said here* | the worst |  |  |  |  | vn wish-62 «NP V NP»: agent=Pivot bad=Theme |

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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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