--- title: In old, old, olden times, when all our world was just loose earth an… — The Book of Dragons · tree and pragmatics description: In old, old, olden times, when all our world was just loose earth and air and fire and water mixed up anyhow like a pudding, and spinning around like mad trying to get the different things to settle into their proper places, a round piece of earth got loose and went spinning away by itself across th --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/3/28/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [The Book of Dragons](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/) / [Opening, part 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/3/) / 28 # The Book of Dragons, Opening, part 3, sentence 28 In old, old, olden times, when all our world was just loose earth and air and fire and water mixed up anyhow like a pudding, and spinning around like mad trying to get the different things to settle into their proper places, a round piece of earth got loose and went spinning away by itself across the water, which was just beginning to try to get spread out smooth into a real sea. **Who acts:** world, round piece · **What happens:** be, mix up, spin around, try, get, settle · **To what, where:** loose earth, water, different things, proper places, real sea This is a sentence of «The Book of Dragons» by E. Nesbit, Opening, part 3. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (world, round piece), what happens, when and where, as Mova's frames read it from the tree. **Parsed by Mova, not checked by a teacher.** This tree is Mova's own parse (the `en` model, on the CPU, when the site is built); it may be wrong. ## The tree {#tree} ```conllu # sent_id = book:pg23661:3:28 # text = In old, old, olden times, when all our world was just loose earth and air and fire and water mixed up anyhow like a pudding, and spinning around like mad trying to get the different things to settle into their proper places, a round piece of earth got loose and went spinning away by itself across the water, which was just beginning to try to get spread out smooth into a real sea. 1 In in ADP IN _ 7 case _ _ 2 old old ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 7 amod _ SpaceAfter=No 3 , , PUNCT , _ 2 punct _ _ 4 old old ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 7 amod _ SpaceAfter=No 5 , , PUNCT , _ 4 punct _ _ 6 olden olden ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 7 amod _ _ 7 times time NOUN NNS Number=Plur 0 root _ SpaceAfter=No 8 , , PUNCT , _ 9 punct _ _ 9 when when ADV WRB PronType=Int 7 conj _ _ 10 all all DET DT PronType=Tot 12 det _ _ 11 our our PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 12 nmod:poss _ _ 12 world world NOUN NN Number=Sing 16 nsubj _ _ 13 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 16 cop _ _ 14 just just ADV RB _ 15 advmod _ _ 15 loose loose ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 16 amod _ _ 16 earth earth NOUN NN Number=Sing 9 nsubj _ _ 17 and and CCONJ CC _ 18 cc _ _ 18 air air NOUN NN Number=Sing 16 conj _ _ 19 and and CCONJ CC _ 20 cc _ _ 20 fire fire NOUN NN Number=Sing 16 conj _ _ 21 and and CCONJ CC _ 22 cc _ _ 22 water water NOUN NN Number=Sing 16 conj _ _ 23 mixed mix VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 22 acl _ _ 24 up up ADP RP _ 23 compound:prt _ _ 25 anyhow anyhow ADV RB _ 23 advmod _ _ 26 like like ADP IN _ 28 case _ _ 27 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 28 det _ _ 28 pudding pudding NOUN NN Number=Sing 23 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 29 , , PUNCT , _ 53 punct _ _ 30 and and CCONJ CC _ 53 cc _ _ 31 spinning spin VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 53 advcl _ _ 32 around around ADV RB _ 31 advmod _ _ 33 like like ADP IN _ 34 case _ _ 34 mad mad ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 31 obl _ _ 35 trying try VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 31 conj _ _ 36 to to PART TO _ 37 mark _ _ 37 get get VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 35 xcomp _ _ 38 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 40 det _ _ 39 different different ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 40 amod _ _ 40 things thing NOUN NNS Number=Plur 37 obj _ _ 41 to to PART TO _ 42 mark _ _ 42 settle settle VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 40 acl _ _ 43 into into ADP IN _ 46 case _ _ 44 their their PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 46 nmod:poss _ _ 45 proper proper ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 46 amod _ _ 46 places place NOUN NNS Number=Plur 42 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 47 , , PUNCT , _ 50 punct _ _ 48 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 50 det _ _ 49 round round ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 50 amod _ _ 50 piece piece NOUN NN Number=Sing 53 nsubj _ _ 51 of of ADP IN _ 52 case _ _ 52 earth earth NOUN NN Number=Sing 50 nmod _ _ 53 got get VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 16 parataxis _ _ 54 loose loose ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 53 xcomp _ _ 55 and and CCONJ CC _ 56 cc _ _ 56 went go VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 53 conj _ _ 57 spinning spin VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 56 xcomp _ _ 58 away away ADV RB _ 57 advmod _ _ 59 by by ADP IN _ 60 case _ _ 60 itself itself PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs|Reflex=Yes 57 obl _ _ 61 across across ADP IN _ 63 case _ _ 62 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 63 det _ _ 63 water water NOUN NN Number=Sing 57 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 64 , , PUNCT , _ 68 punct _ _ 65 which which PRON WDT PronType=Rel 68 nsubj _ _ 66 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 68 aux _ _ 67 just just ADV RB _ 68 advmod _ _ 68 beginning begin VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 57 conj _ _ 69 to to PART TO _ 70 mark _ _ 70 try try VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 68 xcomp _ _ 71 to to PART TO _ 73 mark _ _ 72 get get AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 73 aux:pass _ _ 73 spread spread VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 70 xcomp _ _ 74 out out ADP RP _ 73 compound:prt _ _ 75 smooth smooth ADV RB _ 73 advmod _ _ 76 into into ADP IN _ 79 case _ _ 77 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 79 det _ _ 78 real real ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 79 amod _ _ 79 sea sea NOUN NN Number=Sing 73 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 80 . . PUNCT . _ 7 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is a** | past | our world | loose earth and air and fire and water | | | | | tree rules | | 2 | **mix up** | participle | | water *not said here* | | | | like a pudding; anyhow *property* | vn mix-22.1-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Patient | | 3 | **spin around** | gerund | a round piece of earth *not said here* | | | | | like mad; around *property* | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP.theme V»: agent=Theme | | 4 | **try** | gerund | a round piece of earth *not said here* | | | | | | vn try-61.1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality | | 5 | **get** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | a round piece of earth *not said here* | the different things | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer thing=Stimulus | | 6 | **settle** | to-infinitive | a round piece of earth *not said here* | the different things *not said here* | | earth's proper places | | | vn correspond-36.1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 7 | **get** | past | a round piece of earth | | | | | loose *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer | | 8 | **go** | past | a round piece of earth *not said here* | | | | | | vn say-37.7 «NP V S-Quote»: agent=Agent clause=Topic | | 9 | **spin away** | gerund | a round piece of earth *not said here* | | | the water | | by piece; away *property* | vn roll-51.3.1 «NP.theme V PP.source PP.trajectory PP.destination»: agent=Theme by itself=Source across water=Trajectory | | 10 | **begin** | past · progressive | | | | | | | vn begin-55.1-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality | | 11 | **try** | to-infinitive | | | | | | | vn try-61.1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality | | 12 | **spread out** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive · passive | | | | a real sea | | smooth *property* | vn spray-9.7-1 «NP V PP.destination»: into sea=Destination | 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. **Text:** «The Book of Dragons» by E. Nesbit, Project Gutenberg book 23661 (public domain in the USA). **Tree:** Mova's own parse, Elamur Cosmic License. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), the chapter read in order. - ← previous: [sentence 27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/3/27/) - next →: [sentence 29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/3/29/) - ↑ back to [Opening, part 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg23661/3/)