Grimm's Household Tales, Clever Hans, part 50: Hans rings the bells, outwits the headless dwarves, then rides off through snow

Tests: 2 of 14 right · Exam: 1 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 15 of 18 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 1799 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 ✗

Oi mate, why was the minister so skint he made his staff glug loads of beer?

1. So they'd drink less ale — no support
2. So they'd scoff less grub — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Because the pub down the road had cut its prices and he wanted the lads to drink at home — score 2
4. Because he was a stingy git who wanted them to starve and work harder all day — ← 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 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1799, line 2: «Hans, a hungry youth, offers to work for the minister, who is so stingy that he makes his servants drink to eat less.», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «minister» (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★ · wrong ✗

Wait, did the last bell ringer just do a runner, like totally vanish?

1. Yeah, he vanished into thin air and the whole village reckons the minister ate him for dinner — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Nah, he's hiding up in the bell tower with the headless bloke and the dwarves — no support
3. Yeah, he went off to the pub — no support
4. Yeah, he vanished into thin air — ✓ 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 ✗

Hans was dead chuffed when he saw that card lot in church, right?

1. He was thrilled and joined in the game, winning all their coins and laughing about it all night — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He was excited and joined in — no support
3. He was buzzing and having loads of fun — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. He was delighted, but he was also furious that nobody had invited him to the card game earlier in the evening — 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 · ★ · right ✓

So when Hans got to the top, what did he do with the headless bloke in the bell?

1. He threatened to chuck him out the window — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 3
2. He tried to shake his hand — no support
3. He pushed him to the floor — no support
4. He sat down with him and asked him for the secret of the bell and the gold — score 3

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 1799, line 4: «In the bell tower Hans threatens the last dwarf, spares him when he begs, rings the bells, and sleeps in the hayloft until noon.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «threaten» (+3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★ · wrong ✗

Did the little dwarves beg for mercy like proper little snivellers?

1. Yeah, they shouted for help — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Nah, they fought back hard — no support
3. Yeah, they begged him to spare their lives — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Nah, they laughed — 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 6 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why was Hans's kip so long the next morning, like till dinner?

1. He slept in the hayloft till noon — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. He had slept in the hayloft till noon after ringing the bells all night and tumbling down the stairs — score -5
3. He stayed in the tower till dinner — ← Mova's choice · score -1
4. He slept on the pews till dawn — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 3 with score -1, against -5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1646, line 2: «She tidies the secret palace every day, eats a good dinner there, and finally asks the young man his name.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same circumstance (+2). Against it: the same doer «girl» (-1); a different action (counts against) (-2). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · wrong ✗

Hang on, so Hans only does sun up to sun down?

1. Nah, he works from dawn to dark all year round and gets two hours off every day for tea — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. Yeah, dawn to dark in summer — ✓ the right answer · score 2
3. Yeah, noon to midnight — no support
4. Yeah, dawn to dark in summer, but in winter he works through the night and sleeps at noon — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 3, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1799, line 15: «How: the minister and Hans agree that Hans will work "from dawn to dark" in summer.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «work» (+3). The right option, 2, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★ · wrong ✗

So the minister reckons Hans should stay late in winter?

1. He said it would happen every single winter and Hans must stay late every night without any extra pay — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. It would happen every winter — no support
3. He said it might happen now and then, but he would pay Hans extra for every hour past sunset — score 3
4. He said it might happen now and then — ✓ the right answer · score 3

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 1799, line 11: «Why: Hans kicks the first dwarf and tells him "a great deal of good your gratitude is likely to do me!"», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «tell» (+3). The right option, 4, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why's Hans bringing a bag of grub to a christening?

1. The trip might take past sunset because the wood is thick and the horse is old and slow — ← Mova's choice · score -1
2. The road was icy — no support
3. They might get lost — no support
4. The trip might take past sunset — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score -1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1673, line 5: «Ciccu gives the old man half his figs, brings the king a basket of ripe ones, and gets a job, so his brothers plot against him.», reached through a sentence linked to the one the question matched. What matched: the same property (+3). Against it: the same doer «ciccu» (-4). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · wrong ✗

Mate, what does Hans reckon happens when the sun goes down?

1. He is no longer bound by the agreement and may go to the tavern until dawn with the other servants — no support
2. He becomes a free man — ← Mova's choice · score 2
3. He stops being the minister's servant — ✓ the right answer · score 2
4. He turns into a dwarf and joins the card players in the church tower — score 2

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 2 with score 2, tied with another option at 2 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1423, line 15: «When the sun turns "as red as blood", the basilisks swell "mountains high" and breathe fire from mouth and ears.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «turn» (+1); the same doer «sun» (+1). The right option, 3, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

What was the snow doing to their ride, then?

1. It had blown into massive heaps across the lane and buried the wheels up to the axle — score 0
2. It had frozen into sheets — no support
3. It had melted into puddles — no support
4. It had blown into massive heaps — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 0

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 4 with score 0, tied with another option at 0 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1799, line 16: «How: on the road the snow "had been blown by the wind into drifts," which slows the ride.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+1). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★ · wrong ✗

Did Hans reckon they'd get home before dark, or what?

1. He doubted it — no support
2. No, they would not — no support
3. He doubted they'd reach town in daylight — ✓ the right answer · score 1
4. He thought they would be home by dusk — ← Mova's choice · score 3

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 3, against 1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 728, line 1: «Hans, now light-hearted after losing his heavy stone in a river, walks home to his mother and tells her how easy the road to luck is.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «hans» (+2); the same property (+1). The right option, 3, scored 1. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 13 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why's everyone whispering the minister murdered the missing men?

1. Because the ringers vanished and rumours spread — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The minister had hidden the bodies — score -1
3. The men were poisoned at dinner — no support
4. Because the ringers vanished one by one and the minister was seen locking the tower door on the nights they disappeared — ← Mova's choice · score 0

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 4 with score 0, against -1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1414, line 14: «The gardener's son gets "an old lame horse" and a purse of copper money, so everyone expects him to fail.», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 14 · ★ · wrong ✗

So did the minister get what he wanted with his double wages offer?

1. No, one man refused it — ← Mova's choice · score 7
2. No, nobody took the offer — ✓ the right answer · score 3
3. Yes, Hans accepted it — score 7
4. No, none did — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 1 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1722, line 7: «fact: Where: the old couple's village, where the King has announced his offer.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «king» (+3); the same thing acted on «offer» (+3); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 2, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following best describes the outcome of the minister's offer of double wages?

1. Nobody reported to the minister — no support
2. No person came forward to accept the offer, so the minister had to hire outsiders from the next town instead — no support
3. No person came forward at first, but three workers accepted it the following week and vanished too — ← Mova's choice · score -10
4. No person came forward to accept the offer — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 3 with score -10, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 589, line 13: «The old man offers to be the boy's "hoss," a horse to carry him, and he says he "speck" he is not too old for that.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. Against it: it fills the role the question asks for (-2); a different action (counts against) (-2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓

What was the cause of the servants' disappearance as reported in the text?

1. Dwarves took them away at night — score 2
2. The text leaves the cause unexplained, but suspicion fell on the minister, who was seen locking the tower — score 3
3. The text says they fled the village — score 3
4. The text leaves the cause unexplained, but suspicion fell on the minister — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 3

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 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 1093, line 14: «The ring falls into the cake "whether by design or no," so the text leaves it unclear if she did it on purpose.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «leave» (+3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which phrase identifies the meaning of "dumb" as used in the passage?

1. Silent, without the power of speech — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Unable to speak clearly — ← Mova's choice · score 3
3. Silent, without the power of speech, and unable to answer when spoken to by anyone — score 3
4. Foolish and slow of wit — no support

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 2 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 1562, line 15: «Old word: "thou" and "thee" are old forms of "you", used when speaking to one person.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «speak» (+2); it fills the role the question asks for (+1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which statement correctly sets out the agreement reached between Hans and the minister?

1. Hans would labour from dusk to dawn with two hours for sleep — ← Mova's choice · score -3
2. Hans would labour from dawn to dusk with two hours of rest at midday and a double wage paid each Sunday for the extra work — no support
3. Hans would labour from dawn to dusk, with an hour after breakfast and an hour after dinner for sleep — ✓ the right answer · score -3
4. Hans would labour from dawn to dusk, with an hour after breakfast and an hour after dinner for sleep, and also keep the church bells rung every night at midnight — no support

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. 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 1746, line 14: «The Witch lives with "her fifteen young sons" and promises "a boat" to help them reach the mainland.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1); the same doer «sons» (-2). The right option, 3, scored -3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

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