---
title: Why do people let muddy water stand for a while before pouring it of… — Mixtures and how to separate them · tree and pragmatics
description: Why do people let muddy water stand for a while before pouring it off carefully? Test 6 · ★★ of lesson 19 «Mixtures and how to separate them» of the world 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 6 · ★★ · Mixtures and how to separate them

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Why do people let muddy water stand for a while before pouring it off carefully?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** people · **What happens:** let, pour off · **To what, where:** muddy water stand, stand

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 6 · ★★ of lesson 19 «Mixtures and how to separate them» of the world 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/world/19-mixtures-and-separating/#t6).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:world:19-mixtures-and-separating:t6:1
# text = Why do people let muddy water stand for a while before pouring it off carefully?
1	Why	why	ADV	WRB	PronType=Int	4	advmod	_	_
2	do	do	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	people	people	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	let	let	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	muddy	muddy	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
6	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	stand	stand	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
8	for	for	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	while	while	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
11	before	before	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
12	pouring	pour	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	4	advcl	_	_
13	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	obj	_	_
14	off	off	ADP	RP	_	12	compound:prt	_	_
15	carefully	carefully	ADV	RB	_	12	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **let** | present · do-support | people | muddy water stand |  |  | while |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent stand=Theme |
| 2 | **pour off** | gerund | people *not said here* | stand |  |  |  | carefully *property* | vn preparing-26.3-2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent it=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.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Standing water kills all the germs

```conllu
# sent_id = question:world:19-mixtures-and-separating:t6:o1:1
# text = Standing water kills all the germs
1	Standing	stand	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	2	amod	_	_
2	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	kills	kill	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	all	all	DET	PDT	PronType=Tot	6	det:predet	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	germs	germ	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	3	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **stand** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **kill** | present | Standing water | all germs |  |  |  |  | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent germ=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The mud dissolves while it stands

```conllu
# sent_id = question:world:19-mixtures-and-separating:t6:o2:1
# text = The mud dissolves while it stands
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	mud	mud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	dissolves	dissolve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	while	while	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
5	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	nsubj	_	_
6	stands	stand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **dissolve** | present | the mud |  |  |  |  |  | vn break-45.1 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **stand** | present | mud |  |  |  |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The water cleans itself in the sunshine as it stands there

```conllu
# sent_id = question:world:19-mixtures-and-separating:t6:o3:1
# text = The water cleans itself in the sunshine as it stands there
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	cleans	clean	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	itself	itself	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs|Reflex=Yes	3	obj	_	_
5	in	in	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	sunshine	sunshine	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	_
8	as	as	SCONJ	IN	_	10	mark	_	_
9	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	10	nsubj	_	_
10	stands	stand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
11	there	there	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	10	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **clean** | present | the water | water |  | the sunshine |  |  | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP V NP.patient»: agent=Agent itself=Patient |
| 2 | **stand** | present | water |  |  | there |  |  | vn assuming\_position-50 «NP V»: agent=Agent |

### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The mud settles, so clearer water can be poured off

```conllu
# sent_id = question:world:19-mixtures-and-separating:t6:o4:1
# text = The mud settles, so clearer water can be poured off
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	mud	mud	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	settles	settle	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
5	so	so	ADV	RB	_	10	advmod	_	_
6	clearer	clear	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	7	amod	_	_
7	water	water	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	nsubj:pass	_	_
8	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	10	aux	_	_
9	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	10	aux:pass	_	_
10	poured	pour	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	ccomp	_	_
11	off	off	ADP	RP	_	10	compound:prt	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **settle** | present | the mud |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pour off** | can · passive |  | clearer water |  |  |  |  | vn preparing-26.3-2 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

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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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- ← previous: [Mixtures and how to separate them, test 5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/19-mixtures-and-separating/t5/)
- next →: [Mixtures and how to separate them, test 7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/19-mixtures-and-separating/t7/)
- ↑ back to [Mixtures and how to separate them](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/19-mixtures-and-separating/)