--- title: How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face», a lesson of the adult life course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: Gossip is not only about famous people; most of it is about the people right next to you, in --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Adult life](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/) / How to handle gossip: is it true, is i… # How to handle gossip: is it true, is it kind, would I say it to their face Lesson 49 of the adult life course of Mova's primary school: 20 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/0/) — Gossip is not only about famous people; most of it is about the people right next to you, in the lunch queue, the group chat and the playground. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/1/) — And there it hurts most, because the person has to walk into class the next morning. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/2/) — A rumour grows each time it is passed on: a spilled water bottle becomes "she wet herself", "he's away working" becomes "he's in prison", and Lily said Maya said Zoe said becomes something Hannah never said. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/3/) — Vivid example: in Toronto, Mum is on the phone with her friend: "And you'll never guess what Karen's — actually, no. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/4/) — I shouldn't say. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/5/) — It's not my story to tell." She hangs up and winks at you: "Best sentence I know, that one." - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/6/) — Three questions stop most cruel gossip: is it true, is it kind, is it needed? - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/7/) — And one more: would I say it to their face? - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/8/) — Rumours about classmates are cruel, especially about their bodies; you can stop one by not passing it on. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/9/) — A classmate's family, like where a dad works or why parents are sad, is private; don't pass on what you heard. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/10/) — Explaining away someone's good marks as "copying" is usually jealousy dressed as news. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/12/) — "It's not my story to tell" means keeping a friend's news for the friend to share. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/13/) — Before passing something on, ask: is it true, is it kind, is it needed? - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/14/) — If you would not say it to their face, don't say it behind their back. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/15/) — Chains of "she said" twist the truth; ask the person yourself. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/16/) — Enjoying a silly, obviously made-up story is fine, as long as everyone knows it is silly; friendly chat that keeps sad things private is fine too. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/17/) — Online is not the same as true: check where a story comes from and its date, and look for two trusted sources before sharing news; if you are not sure, "I don't know" is a fine answer. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/18/) — Never accuse someone because "everyone says"; accusations are for a teacher to look into. - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/19/) — A secret told to you is a gift; giving it away hurts the friend who trusted you. - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/49-how-to-handle-gossip/20/) — "I'm just saying what I heard" and "I only told one person" are still spreading a rumour. - ← previous: [Famous people are people: privacy, scams and kind stories](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/48-famous-people-are-people/) - next →: [Rumours about classmates and what to do with a secret](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/50-rumours-about-classmates-and-secrets/) - ↑ back to [Adult life](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/)