--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 3: The River Bank (the Otter, a glimpse of Badger, and Toad in his new boat) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 3: The River Bank (the Otter, a glimpse of Badger, and Toad in his new boat)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: While they eat, the Mole notices a line of bubbles mov --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/) [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/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/) / The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, pa… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 3: The River Bank (the Otter, a glimpse of Badger, and Toad in his new boat) Lesson 27 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 33 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/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/0/) — While they eat, the Mole notices a line of bubbles moving along the water. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/1/) — The Rat chirrups, and up climbs the Otter, shaking himself and grumbling «Greedy beggars! - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/2/) — Why didn't you invite me?» He and the Mole are friends at once. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/3/) — A stripy head peeps out of a hedge: Badger. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/4/) — Company,» he grunts, and turns his back and disappears. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/5/) — That's just like him, says the Rat — he hates crowds and parties. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/6/) — Toad is out on the river, says the Otter, in a brand-new racing boat with new clothes and new everything. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/7/) — The Rat and the Otter laugh: Toad is always mad about something new — sailing, then punting, then a house-boat — and always gets bored of it. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/8/) — They watch him splash past, rolling badly but rowing his hardest. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/9/) — The Otter starts a funny story about Toad — and stops mid-sentence: a May-fly wobbles past, there's a swirl and a «cloop!», and both the May-fly and the Otter are gone. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/10/) — The Mole remembers that good animals never comment when a friend vanishes suddenly. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/11/) — The Mole asks to pack the basket too. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/12/) — It's not as fun as unpacking — he finds a forgotten plate, then the Rat points out a fork, and last of all he finds he's been sitting on the mustard pot — but he gets it done without losing his temper. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/13/) — The Mole sees «a streak of bubbles that I see travelling along the surface of the water»; the Rat says «Bubbles? - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/14/) — Oho!» because he knows who makes them. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/15/) — «A broad glistening muzzle showed itself above the edge of the bank, and the Otter hauled himself out». - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/16/) — His first words: «Greedy beggars! - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/17/) — Why didn't you invite me, Ratty?» - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/19/) — The Otter: «Proud, I'm sure» — an old polite way of saying «pleased to meet you». - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/20/) — The Otter says he came to the backwater for «a moment's peace» and then says sorry because that sounds as if he didn't want to meet them — he puts his foot in it, then tries to take it back. - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/21/) — Badger: «a stripy head, with high shoulders behind it» peered out of a hedge, grunted «H'm! - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/23/) — The Rat: «Simply hates Society!» — Society here means parties, visitors and polite company. - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/25/) — In his brand-new wager-boat; new togs, new everything!» A wager-boat is a light, narrow racing boat; «togs» = clothes. - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/26/) — Toad's crazes so far: «Once, it was nothing but sailing», then punting (pushing a flat boat along with a long pole), then «Last year it was house-boating». - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/27/) — «he gets tired of it, and starts on something fresh.» - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/28/) — The Otter: «Such a good fellow, too ... - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/30/) — Toad is «a short, stout figure—splashing badly and rolling a good deal, but working his hardest»; when the Rat calls to him he shakes his head and keeps on rowing. - [32](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/32/) — Neither was the Otter.» — the Otter dived after the May-fly to eat it. - [34](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/34/) — «animal-etiquette forbade any sort of comment on the sudden disappearance of one's friends at any moment, for any reason or no reason whatever.» - [35](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/35/) — Packing up: a plate «staring up at him from the grass», a fork «which anybody ought to have seen», and «the mustard pot, which he had been sitting on without knowing it». - [36](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/36/) — «Packing the basket was not quite such pleasant work as unpacking the basket. - [37](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/37/) — It never is.» - [38](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/38/) — Old words: «provender» = food; «forthwith» = at once; «rumpus» = noise and fuss; «athwart» = across; «whereon» = on which; «Greedy beggars!» = a friendly tease, not a real insult. - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 2: The River Bank (the picnic basket, the Wild Wood and the Wide World)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 4: The River Bank (the Mole grabs the oars, the boat goes over, and a friendship begins)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/28-willows-ch1-part4-sploosh/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)