---
title: Lucky socks and Grandma's superstitions — how Mova does on the tests · World
description: Lesson 161 of the world course of Mova's primary school: 6 of 11 tests right, exam 1 of 4, every question with the options, the student's choice, the right answer and why it chose.
---

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# Lucky socks and Grandma's superstitions

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**Tests:** 6 of 11 right · **Exam:** 1 of 4 right · **Kind:** plain · **Understood:** 8 of 15 · **Run:** 2026-10-18, commit `f3c23ea72`

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Lesson 161 of the world course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/).

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Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson's questions in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/).

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### Test 1 · right ✓ {#t1}

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Grandson: "Grandad, the players can't even see your socks, mate. You're not on the team sheet." What is he making fun of?

- **1.** The idea that socks at home can change the score — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** The colour red — no support
- **3.** Grandad's taste in socks — no support
- **4.** Grandad being old — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t1/)

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### Test 2 · right ✓ {#t2}

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Nan: "Aye, and I suppose my slippers won the cup in '86." What does she mean?

- **1.** She really believes her slippers helped her team win the cup back then — no support
- **2.** By the same logic any old thing could win a match — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **3.** Slippers are luckier than socks — score 4
- **4.** She played in the cup final in 1986 — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 4, tied with another option at 4 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 161, line 1: «Grandad wears his "lucky" red socks for every big match. When his team wins he says, "See? The socks did it." When they lose in the same socks, he finds an exc…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+2); the same thing acted on «match» (+1); a different doer (counts against) (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t2/)

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### Test 3 · right ✓ {#t3}

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Big sister, fed up: "Shut it about the cat, Nan, it's three streets away having a nap." Which is true?

- **1.** Black cats only bring bad luck on Fridays, not today — no support
- **2.** The cat had nothing to do with the dropped jar — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 9
- **3.** The cat made Nan so nervous that she dropped it — score 5
- **4.** Jars break much more often in the hour after lunch — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 9, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 161, line 10: «A rule that explains every result, good or bad, can never be wrong, so it tells you nothing; inventing a new excuse each time it fails is called moving the goa…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: its «because» matches the remembered cause (+4); the same thing acted on «nothing» (+3); the same doer «rule» (+2). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t3/)

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### Test 4 · wrong ✗ {#t4}

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What would happen if Grandad wrote down every match for a whole season, with socks and without?

- **1.** He would find the team only wins with the socks — **← Mova's choice** · score 7
- **2.** He would find the socks only work away from home — score 4
- **3.** He would find the socks make no difference — **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **4.** He would find the team only loses with the socks — score 4

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 1 with score 7, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 161, line 1: «Grandad wears his "lucky" red socks for every big match. When his team wins he says, "See? The socks did it." When they lose in the same socks, he finds an exc…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «team» (+4); the same action «win» (+3). The right option, 3, scored 4. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t4/)

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### Test 5 · wrong ✗ {#t5}

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In a cartoon a man walks under a ladder and a piano falls on him "because of bad luck". Put it right.

- **1.** Walking under ladders is always safe, even while people are working up on them — **← Mova's choice** · score 2
- **2.** Pianos only fall near ladders on Fridays — no support
- **3.** Ladders really do bring bad luck, so pianos fall — no support
- **4.** Things can fall from above a ladder; it's about safety, not luck — **✓ the right answer** · no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 2, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 161, line 12: «The one sensible reason not to walk under a ladder is safety: a tool or a paint pot could fall; stepping into a busy road to avoid it is more dangerous.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «walk» (+4); the same place «ladder» (+4). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-6). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t5/)

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### Test 6 · wrong ✗ {#t6}

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Sofia: "So if I'm unlucky it's the broom, and if I'm lucky it's also the broom?" What trap has she spotted?

- **1.** Brooms work quite differently in the daytime than at night — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** Sweeping at night is actually lucky after all, not unlucky — no support
- **3.** Finding money on the floor is always a sign of good luck — no support
- **4.** A rule that fits every result and so explains nothing — **✓ the right answer** · no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t6/)

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### Test 7 · right ✓ {#t7}

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Ellie says, "Absolute weapon of a plan, Dad," about skipping floor 13. What does she mean?

- **1.** She wants to sleep on floor 12 instead — no support
- **2.** It's a brilliant plan and she is impressed — no support
- **3.** The plan is dangerous, like a weapon — no support
- **4.** It's a silly plan, because a new number doesn't change the floor — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 3

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 3, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 161, line 14: «Renaming a floor does not change its height: in a hotel whose lift buttons go 12, 14, the floor marked 14 is really the 13th floor.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+2); a different doer (counts against) (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t7/)

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### Test 8 · right ✓ {#t8}

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Noah: "Ammamma, the crow's not on WhatsApp." Why is this a good comeback?

- **1.** It points to the real cause, the phone call — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** It shows that crows can't count guests — no support
- **3.** It means crows only use other apps — no support
- **4.** It proves that guests never come on Sundays — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t8/)

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### Test 9 · right ✓ {#t9}

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Which is a real reason to be careful opening an umbrella indoors?

- **1.** It lets bad luck into the house — no support
- **2.** It breaks the umbrella's good-luck charm, so it can't protect you — no support
- **3.** It makes pets ill the next week — no support
- **4.** You could knock a lamp or poke someone's eye — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 4

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 161, line 13: «Opening an umbrella indoors can knock a lamp or poke an eye, so care is sensible, but it cannot make anything happen a week later.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «knock» (+3); the same thing acted on «lamp» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t9/)

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### Test 10 · wrong ✗ {#t10}

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Your mate: "Wore my lucky pants and got 10 out of 10, no cap" ("no cap" means honestly). What is the best reply?

- **1.** "Wear your lucky socks as well next time, for double luck." — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** "Did you revise too? Try without them and count." — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **3.** "That's proof, bro, wear them for every single test now." — no support
- **4.** "Lucky pants only work on Fridays, mate, so it's a fluke." — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t10/)

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### Test 11 · wrong ✗ {#t11}

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Callum's sister: "Aye, the shoes sat the test for him." What is she doing?

- **1.** Praising Gran's new shoes — no support
- **2.** Saying shoes really can take tests — **← Mova's choice** · score 6
- **3.** Being sarcastic about Gran's reasoning — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** Calling her brother stupid — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 2 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 106, line 3: «"On time" means different things in different places. For school, trains, the dentist and a match, be on time or a bit early; a coach who says "if you're on ti…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same action «say» (+2); a different thing acted on (counts against) (+1). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/t11/)

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### Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e1}

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Identify the principal error in the inference that a black cat crossing the road caused a jar to be dropped later the same day.

- **1.** The supposition that glass jars are fragile — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** The failure to ascertain the precise colour of the cat — no support
- **3.** The omission of the day of the week from the account — no support
- **4.** The assumption that an earlier event necessarily caused a later one — **✓ the right answer** · no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/e1/)

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### Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓ {#e2}

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Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning a hotel whose lift omits the numeral thirteen.

- **1.** The floor designated fourteen is in fact the thirteenth storey — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** The floor designated twelve is the thirteenth storey — no support
- **3.** The thirteenth storey has been removed entirely from the structure of the building — no support
- **4.** The floor designated fourteen is the fourteenth storey — no support

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**Why:** Nothing it remembers matched the question, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/e2/)

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### Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e3}

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Determine which procedure would constitute a fair test of whether a charm confers good fortune.

- **1.** A single trial conducted in the presence of the charm — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** An enquiry into the age and origin of the charm — no support
- **3.** A count of outcomes with and without the charm over many occasions — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** The sworn testimony of the owner of the charm — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/e3/)

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### Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e4}

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Which of the following most accurately characterises a belief that is maintained by supplying a fresh excuse upon each failure?

- **1.** It is confirmed afresh by each failure — no support
- **2.** It becomes steadily more probable with the passage of time and further failures — score 5
- **3.** It cannot be shown to be wrong and is therefore uninformative — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** It is proven by the number of excuses offered — **← Mova's choice** · score 7

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**Why:** It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 4 with score 7, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 161, line 6: «A superstition is a belief that an object, action or number brings good or bad luck, with nothing that really connects them.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+4); the same doer «object» (+3). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/world/161-lucky-socks-and-grandmas-superstitions/e4/)

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