Lang's Fairy Book, Esben and the Witch: Esben roasts the witch, saves his brothers and goes home

Tests: 3 of 13 right · Exam: 0 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 14 of 17 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 1659 of the books 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.

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 · ★ · wrong ✗

yo so where did Esben chill when the witch nabbed him?

1. up in a tall tree — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. in a cold stone well — no support
3. in a dark little room — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. in the cellar — 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 2 · ★ · wrong ✗

lol the witch's daughter had like one tooth left, right?

1. nope, none — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. yep, just one — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. nah, three left — no support
4. no, zero — 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 ✗

wait, what did Esben wrap in skin for the witch to bite?

1. a long iron nail wrapped in cow skin — score -1
2. a brass key — ← Mova's choice · score 4
3. a silver ring — score 4
4. an iron nail — ✓ the right answer · score 4

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 1659, line 4: «While the witch is away at Troms Church, Esben makes the daughter sit on the oven spade and roasts her.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «esben» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+2); a different thing acted on (counts against) (+1). Against it: the same circumstance (-1). The right option, 4, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★ · wrong ✗

bruh, how did Esben get the daughter to sit on the spade?

1. he pretended the spade was far too hot — ← Mova's choice · score 5
2. he made out he was too dumb to get it — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. he made out he was too dumb to get it, so she came over to show him — score 5
4. he pretended he was too stupid to lift his own legs up onto the spade — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 1 with score 5, tied with another option at 5 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1659, line 7: «What: The daughter says, "You must cross your legs," and Esben pretends not to understand, so she sits on the spade and gets shot into the oven.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «esben» (+3); the same action «pretend» (+2). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★ · wrong ✗

no way, the witch flew home and went full bananas, yeah?

1. she cried and sank into the floor — ← Mova's choice · score 4
2. she fell down — score 2
3. she turned into a stone — score 1
4. she went all to flint pieces — ✓ the right answer · score 3

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 4, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1659, line 12: «Clue: The witch shouts, "Hey! is that you again, Esben?" when she flies home from Troms Church.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «shout» (+3); the same doer «witch» (+1). The right option, 4, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★ · wrong ✗

sick, why did the eleven brothers end up in the slammer?

1. they never brought the coverlet — ✓ the right answer · score 2
2. they came home empty handed and cheeky to the king — ← Mova's choice · score 3
3. they never brought the coverlet back to the king at all — score 2
4. they had let the witch escape — score 2

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 3, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1533, line 1: «The good man's girl gets a magic birch tree to help her, so she can finish the witch's chores and ride to the palace.», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «girl» (+3). The right option, 1, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · right ✓

ok so Sir Red got what was coming, didn't he?

1. hanged on the highest tree — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. locked up for life and then hanged on the highest tree — no support
3. hanged on the highest tree in the whole forest — no support
4. drowned in the river mud — 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 8 · ★ · wrong ✗

wait, why was the prime minister Ditto even called that?

1. he never argued with nobody — ✓ the right answer · score 0
2. he was just lazy — no support
3. he always agreed with everyone — no support
4. he never bothered with the king — ← Mova's choice · score 3

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 4 with score 3, against 0 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1446, line 11: «The poor man's wife waited with "not even two sticks to lay across each other under the Christmas porridge-pot."», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same circumstance (+1); a different action (counts against) (+1); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, scored 0. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★ · wrong ✗

lol and the prince just kept playing the flute while everything kicked off, right?

1. yep, while the swords were flashing — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. nah, he stopped — score 0
3. nope, he dropped it when the fight began — ← Mova's choice · score 3
4. yep, while the drums were booming away — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 3, against 0 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1550, line 13: «The stepmother's daughter gets the shoe on, but the Prince is "very unwilling" to keep his word because she is so ugly and loathsome.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «word» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · wrong ✗

mate, why did they tie strings to the princess's waist?

1. so the wind couldn't blow her off — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. so the wind couldn't blow her off the high cliffs into the sea — ← Mova's choice · score 1
3. so the wind couldn't blow her away while the king watched from his tower — no support
4. so the crowd could pull her back — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1222, line 17: «Old word: "bowstring" was the string of a bow, which here "hung loose" in the warm damp air; we still say a bowstring today.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: a different thing acted on (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

what even is at sixes and sevens, like everything's a total mess?

1. yep, things are tangled up badly — no support
2. nope, all fine — no support
3. yeah, everything's in a muddle — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. yeah, the whole thing's gone haywire — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1659, line 18: «Old phrase: "Everything was always at sixes and sevens" means everything was in a muddle, which we still say today.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same place «muddle» (+4); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★ · wrong ✗

bro, how did Esben get back to the palace again?

1. by horse — ← Mova's choice · score 6
2. on his little white stick — ✓ the right answer · score 6
3. on a big brown horse — score 6
4. in the king's golden coach — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 1 with score 6, tied with another option at 6 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1658, line 2: «The witch shouts after him, but Esben gets back to the palace, where his brothers are glad and still forget to thank him.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «esben» (+3); the same action «get back» (+2); the same circumstance (+1). The right option, 2, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 13 · ★ · right ✓

so Esben's brothers got loads of gold to carry, yeah?

1. all the gold in the chest — no support
2. not much — no support
3. as much as they could lug — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 0
4. a few coins — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 0, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1101, line 10: «How he tried to move them: he began "to pull and tug at them," then to beat them with a stick, but "they uttered not a sound."», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which phrase best describes the means by which Esben caused the death of the witch's daughter?

1. He tricked her with a lie — score -2
2. He persuaded her to sit down and then shoved her into the fire — score -1
3. He tricked her into sitting on the spade and tossed her into the flames — ← Mova's choice · score 2
4. He induced her to seat herself upon the oven spade and propelled her into the oven — ✓ the right answer · score -2

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 3 with score 2, against -1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1659, line 4: «While the witch is away at Troms Church, Esben makes the daughter sit on the oven spade and roasts her.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same place «oven spade» (+2); the same action «sit» (+1). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 4, scored -2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Identify the agent responsible for the imprisonment of the eleven brothers prior to the events described.

1. The witch, who had cursed them for their boldness and greed — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. The king, who had demanded the coverlet as proof of their success and then locked them away — score 3
3. The king, who had demanded the coverlet as proof of their success — ✓ the right answer · score 0
4. The old king's chief steward, who had insisted that the coverlet be brought back as undeniable proof of their success — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 3, tied with another option at 3 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1122, line 18: «fact: Why: the old woman is "a pagan witch", and she turns the elder brother and his dog to stone.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «elder brother» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 3, scored 0. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

State the outcome of the witch's pursuit of Esben upon her return from Troms Church.

1. She fell into the sea and was swallowed by the waves beyond — no support
2. She fled to the hills — ← Mova's choice · score 0
3. She was struck by lightning and turned into dust across the valley — no support
4. She burst into numerous pieces of flint which scattered across the country — ✓ the right answer · score -1

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 0, against -1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1659, line 12: «Clue: The witch shouts, "Hey! is that you again, Esben?" when she flies home from Troms Church.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. The right option, 4, scored -1. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

Specify the characteristic of the fairy Girouette which rendered her an unsuitable companion for the court.

1. She could not hold any opinion about the weather or the crops for long — no support
2. She flitted from one whim to another so often that no council could ever trust a word she spoke at all — ← Mova's choice · score 2
3. She never settled upon a single decision for more than two minutes — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. She always changed her mind before anyone could agree — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 2, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1562, line 15: «Old word: "thou" and "thee" are old forms of "you", used when speaking to one person.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «old forms» (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

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