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When things break: boilers, plumbers and paint

Tests: 5 of 12 right · Exam: 1 of 4 right · Kind: plain · Understood: 7 of 16 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 11 of the adult life 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.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · right ✓

You overhear Dad on the phone: "Thursday? Seriously? Fine, put me down... and how much? Right." Then he hangs up and groans. What has most likely happened?

  • 1. He has ordered a takeaway for Thursday — no support
  • 2. He has been told off by his boss for being late to work three times this week — no support
  • 3. He has booked a plumber who can't come soon and will be expensive — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
  • 4. He has won a prize that arrives on Thursday — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 11, line 4: «Picture a cold January evening in Manchester: Mum bangs the boiler and says "It's packed in again", Dad sighs "the plumber can't come till Thursday, and it'll…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «come» (+2); the same doer «plumber» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · wrong ✗

my sister says "arm and a leg" means the plumber cuts people up lol. right?

  • 1. Yes, plumbers sometimes do that if you don't pay — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. No, it means the plumber is very tall — no support
  • 3. Yes, but only in old stories — no support
  • 4. No, it just means something costs a lot of money — ✓ the right answer · no support

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

Test 3 · wrong ✗

dad's up the ladder with a drill going "how hard can it be" and mum's like "oh god here we go". why's mum worried

  • 1. Mum wants to do the DIY herself first — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. DIY can go wrong and end up costing more — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 3. Ladders are against the law in houses — no support
  • 4. Drills only work for proper electricians — no support

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

Test 4 · wrong ✗

There's a burnt smell from a plug and a crackle. Your big brother says "I'll sort it, pass me a knife." What is right?

  • 1. Pour water on the plug to cool it — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. Stop him and tell a grown-up, this is a job for an electrician — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 3. Pass him the knife, it is quick and the plug is only a little bit hot — no support
  • 4. Unscrew it yourself while he holds the torch — no support

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

Test 5 · wrong ✗

bloody builders said 2 weeks, it's been 5 and we're STILL eating chips out of paper. what's going on

  • 1. The builders are on a five-week holiday — no support
  • 2. Takeaway is cheaper than cooking, so the family chose it and stopped the job — no support
  • 3. The kitchen job is taking longer than planned, which is common — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 4. The family has decided to eat chips forever — ← Mova's choice · score 0

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 0, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 11, line 10: «Having the kitchen redone means builders take the old one out and put a new one in, so for a while there is nowhere to cook and families eat takeaway.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «eat» (+4); the same doer «families» (+4). Against it: a different thing acted on (counts against) (-2); one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-6). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · right ✓

On the news: "Thousands of tenants say their landlords ignore mould." What does the news story mean?

  • 1. Landlords are complaining about their tenants' cooking making the walls wet — score 4
  • 2. Mould has been found in supermarket food — score 6
  • 3. Tenants are growing mould on purpose — score 12
  • 4. People renting homes say their landlords are not fixing damp — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 14

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 14, against 12 for the next best. Its support: lesson 11, line 12: «Damp is when walls get wet inside and grow black mould; in a rented home the landlord is supposed to fix it, and some are slow to do so.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+6); the same action «suppose» (+4); the same thing acted on «landlord» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · wrong ✗

Gran: "That landlord's useless, three letters and still no one's come about the damp." What might the family do next?

  • 1. Ask the council for help — ✓ the right answer · score 4
  • 2. Paint over the mould and forget it — no support
  • 3. Fix the walls with sticky tape — ← Mova's choice · score 5
  • 4. Stop paying for the water — score 4

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 3 with score 5, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 11, line 10: «Having the kitchen redone means builders take the old one out and put a new one in, so for a while there is nowhere to cook and families eat takeaway.», 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 «cook» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · right ✓

Mum painted the bedroom yesterday and it looks stripy. Your brother says "she did it wrong, ha". Put him right.

  • 1. Stripy paint means the wall is damp — no support
  • 2. She used the wrong kind of brush on purpose to make a pattern of stripes — no support
  • 3. One coat often looks patchy, it needs a second coat when dry — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 10
  • 4. It will stay stripy forever now — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 10, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 11, line 14: «One coat of paint often looks patchy, so a second coat is painted on once the first is dry.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «look» (+4); the same doer «one coat» (+4); the same property (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · wrong ✗

Mum and Dad have been arguing about "Duck Egg" for an hour. Your little sister cries "are you getting divorced?" What is true?

  • 1. Yes, arguing about paint is a sign of a big split — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. Yes, Duck Egg is a code word for a serious fight — no support
  • 3. No, they are arguing about what to cook for tea — no support
  • 4. No, it is just two people with different tastes about a colour — ✓ the right answer · no support

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

Test 10 · right ✓

It's 1am, thump thump through the wall, Dad goes "right, that's it". What is he most likely about to do?

  • 1. Pack the family's bags and move house — score 5
  • 2. Turn on his own music to drown it out forever — score 5
  • 3. Phone the plumber to fix the wall — score 4
  • 4. Go and knock next door and ask them to turn it down — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 10

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 4 with score 10, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 11, line 16: «In houses joined together, sound travels through the walls, so grown-ups first knock and ask politely and only later complain to the landlord or the council.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+6); the same action «knock» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · wrong ✗

"crap, it's Wednesday morning and the bins are still in the drive". what happens now

  • 1. The rubbish stays until the next collection, maybe one or two weeks — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 2. The bins empty themselves at the end of the day — ← Mova's choice · score 4
  • 3. The neighbours have to take your rubbish — no support
  • 4. The council will come back this afternoon specially for your bins — score 0

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 2 with score 4, against 0 for the next best. Its support: lesson 11, line 1: «A home is like a big machine with lots of parts: pipes, wires, a boiler, walls, a roof and bins that need emptying, and every part breaks or wears out sooner o…», reached through what followed the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «bins» (+4). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · right ✓

Which of these is a job the landlord, not the tenant, is supposed to sort out?

  • 1. Fixing the damp and the broken heating — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 2. Choosing the paint colour in the kids' room — no support
  • 3. Taking the bins out on bin night — no support
  • 4. Washing up after tea — no support

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

Exam question 1 · formal language · right ✓

Identify the principal reason for which a householder is advised against undertaking electrical wiring personally.

  • 1. Errors in such work may occasion fire or electric shock — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 2. Wiring is the sole responsibility of the refuse collection service — no support
  • 3. Such work invariably requires a period of several months — no support
  • 4. Electrical components are prohibited from sale to householders — no support

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

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Select the response that is consistent with the established facts concerning dampness in a rented dwelling.

  • 1. Dampness is of no consequence to the health of occupants — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. Dampness is remedied solely by the application of paint — no support
  • 3. The remedy thereof is ordinarily the obligation of the landlord — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 4. The remedy thereof is ordinarily the obligation of the tenant's children — no support

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

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the expression "it will cost an arm and a leg"?

  • 1. The tradesman shall require payment in bodily injury — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. The expenditure incurred will be negligible — no support
  • 3. The expenditure incurred will be very considerable — ✓ the right answer · no support
  • 4. The work shall be performed without charge — no support

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

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

It is given that the refuse of a household is not presented for collection upon the designated evening. Ascertain the most probable consequence.

  • 1. The household shall be required to vacate the dwelling — ← Mova's choice · no support
  • 2. The refuse shall be removed by the landlord forthwith — no support
  • 3. The council shall return on the following morning without fail to collect it — no support
  • 4. The refuse shall remain until the subsequent scheduled collection — ✓ the right answer · no support

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

This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/adult-life/11-when-things-break/