---
title: Zoe says "a light year is a really long time". What's wrong? — Distances and light years · tree and pragmatics
description: Zoe says "a light year is a really long time". What's wrong? Test 1 · ★ of lesson 22 «Distances and light years» of the space 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 1 · ★ · Distances and light years

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Zoe says "a light year is a really long time". What's wrong?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** Zoe, light year · **What happens:** say, be · **To what, where:** long time · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 1 · ★ of lesson 22 «Distances and light years» of the space 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/space/22-distances-and-light-years/#t1).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Zoe says "a light year is a really long time".

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:1
# text = Zoe says "a light year is a really long time".
1	Zoe	Zoe	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
7	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
9	really	really	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
10	long	long	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	amod	_	_
11	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	11	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | Zoe |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is a** *in a quote* | present | a light year | a long time |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- .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's wrong?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:2
# text = What's wrong?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	3	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	cop	_	_
3	wrong	wrong	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | wrong *property* | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

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

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A light year is a distance, not a time

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:o1:1
# text = A light year is a distance, not a time
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	_
3	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	distance	distance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
8	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	10	advmod	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | a light year | a distance and a time |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Nothing, it is just a year of time measured in space

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:o2:1
# text = Nothing, it is just a year of time measured in space
1	Nothing	nothing	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Neg	7	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
3	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
5	just	just	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	year	year	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	_
10	measured	measure	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	acl	_	_
11	in	in	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
12	space	space	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | Nothing | a year |  |  | time |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **measure** | participle |  | a year *not said here* |  | space |  |  | vn register-54.1-2-1 «NP V NP.value»: agent=Theme |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is actually quite a short time, about a month

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:o3:1
# text = It is actually quite a short time, about a month
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	7	cop	_	_
3	actually	actually	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
4	quite	quite	DET	PDT	PronType=Ind	7	det:predet	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	short	short	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
9	about	about	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
10	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	month	month	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	parataxis	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | quite short time |  |  |  | actually *property* | tree rules |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is a speed, how fast light goes, not a time

```conllu
# sent_id = question:space:22-distances-and-light-years:t1:o4:1
# text = It is a speed, how fast light goes, not a time
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	cop	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	speed	speed	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	9	punct	_	_
6	how	how	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	7	advmod	_	_
7	fast	fast	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	advcl	_	_
8	light	light	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nsubj	_	_
9	goes	go	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	acl:relcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	13	punct	_	_
11	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	13	advmod	_	_
12	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	time	time	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | It | a speed and a time |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **go** | present | light |  |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=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.

<!-- /div -->

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