The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 4: Toad's Adventures (the chase, the tunnel and the night wood)

Tests: 6 of 16 right · Exam: 2 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 14 of 20 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 55 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. 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 ✓

«Toad was gutted the driver grassed him up.» (gutted = very disappointed; grassed up = told on) Put it right.

1. Toad was delighted, since the driver had told the warders where to find him in the morning — score 5
2. The driver did not give him up; he helped him escape — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
3. The driver did not give him up; he stopped the train and helped him escape into the wood at once — score 6
4. The driver reported Toad to the warders at once — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 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 55, line 3: «Toad falls on his knees in the coal and confesses who he is; he says he only «borrowed» a motor-car, but the driver calls him a wicked toad — and still decides…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «driver» (+3); the same receiver «toad» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★ · right ✓

Which is TRUE about the driver?

1. He is a warder — no support
2. He is a policeman who loves motor-cars — score 5
3. He thinks Toad was wicked, yet helps him — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. He loves motor-cars and drives fast — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 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 55, line 3: «Toad falls on his knees in the coal and confesses who he is; he says he only «borrowed» a motor-car, but the driver calls him a wicked toad — and still decides…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «driver» (+3); the same receiver «toad» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★ · wrong ✗

«I only borrowed a motorcar.» What is the truth?

1. He borrowed it and returned it the next day — ← Mova's choice · score 6
2. It was a joke — no support
3. He hired it, and paid the owners later on — score 6
4. He stole it: he took it without asking and was found guilty — ✓ the right answer · score 6

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. 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 55, line 13: «Asked why he was in prison, he says: «I only borrowed a motorcar while the owners were at lunch»: he still won't call it stealing.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); a different action (counts against) (+2); the same thing acted on «motorcar» (+1). The right option, 4, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★ · right ✓

«Toad yeeted a stone at the fox.» (yeet = throw hard) Put it right.

1. He looked for a stone but could not find one — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
2. He threw a heavy rock at the fox and it hit the fence post beside the road — score 4
3. He picked up a pebble and tossed it gently — score 3
4. He picked up a large stone and hurled it hard at the fox, who ran away — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 6, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 52, line 17: «Toad describes his house like an estate agent's advert: «an eligible self-contained gentleman's residence very unique ... Up-to-date sanitation. Five minutes f…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+3); the same thing acted on «house» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★ · wrong ✗

Kirsty from Fife: «Toad's delulu, he kens fine the owl's a warder's hand.» (delulu = believing something unreal; kens = knows) Put it right.

1. It was only an owl's wing and a branch moving — no support
2. A warder's hand, after all, was truly there — no support
3. It was only an owl's wing brushing past, and Toad's terror made him imagine a warder's hand grabbing him — ← Mova's choice · score 6
4. It was only an owl's wing; Toad's fear made him imagine a hand — ✓ the right answer · score 6

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 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 55, line 18: «Toad «jumped, rolled down a short embankment, picked himself up unhurt, scrambled into the wood and hid»; when the chase has passed he has «a hearty laugh — fo…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+3); the same thing acted on «toad» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 4, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★ · right ✓

What would have happened if Toad had jumped while the chasers could see him?

1. They would have stopped and caught him in the wood — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. The driver would have refused to help him at all and would have called the warders instead — no support
3. They would have stopped the engine at once — no support
4. They would have chased him through the fields — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 55, line 18: «Toad «jumped, rolled down a short embankment, picked himself up unhurt, scrambled into the wood and hid»; when the chase has passed he has «a hearty laugh — fo…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «pick up» (+5); the same thing acted on «toad» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why does the fox call Toad «washerwoman»?

1. Toad is still in the washerwoman's gown and bonnet — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Because Toad disguised himself as a washerwoman to escape, and still wears her gown and bonnet — ← Mova's choice · score 4
3. Because Toad's voice sounds like a woman's — no support
4. Because Toad has been stopped by a washerwoman who thinks he owes her money for linen — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 4, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 53, line 3: «Toad is offended — Mr. Toad of Toad Hall, dressed as a washerwoman! — but when the girl snaps that he can stay in prison as a Toad, he admits he has been proud…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «toad» (+3); the same circumstance (+2). Against it: 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 8 · ★ · wrong ✗

«Half a pair of socks» — what is the joke?

1. It means the laundry lost one sock of two — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The fox says the washerwoman has lost one sock, which is why the pair is broken — no support
3. Half a pair is one sock, as if the washerwoman lost one — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The fox means that Toad has stolen half of a pair of socks from the laundry of the inn — 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 9 · ★ · wrong ✗

Liam from Brisbane: «they stopped the train at the servo and Toad just walked off.» (servo = petrol station) Put it right.

1. The driver stopped the engine at a petrol station, and Toad walked off into the town for supper — score 4
2. The engine halted at the village and Toad walked home — ← Mova's choice · score 5
3. The driver stopped at the servo after a tunnel and Toad hid in the petrol shed until morning — score 5
4. The driver slowed after a tunnel and Toad jumped into a wood — ✓ the right answer · score 4

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 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 54, line 1: «Free but dizzy with success, Toad hurries away from the town where the real washerwoman is so well known, and sees the red and green lights of a railway statio…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+3); the same property (+1); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 4, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter III the Rat said Toad wouldn't go into the Wild Wood alone «for a whole hatful of golden guineas». Where is Toad tonight?

1. Walking home along a dusty road with friends — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. Alone in a dark wood at night, with the warders hunting him and his supper missing — no support
3. Alone in a strange wood at night, frightened by every sound — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Asleep in his bed at Toad Hall, warm and safe — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask where. 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 41, line 13: «Then «a small sting of frozen sleet on the skin woke them as from a dream». The Mole's thoughts «ran a good deal on supper»; the Rat walks ahead «his shoulders…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «walk» (+2); the same circumstance (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

Looking back: what did the Rat shout at the motor-car that wrecked the caravan in chapter II?

1. «You brutes! Mind the bend ahead!» — no support
2. «Dolts!» — score 4
3. «You villains! ... you — roadhogs!» — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
4. «Go away!» — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 3 with score 5, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 32, line 8: «The Rat shouted: «You villains! ... You scoundrels, you highwaymen, you—you—roadhogs!—I'll have the law of you! I'll report you! I'll take you through all the…», 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 thing acted on «roadhog» (+3); a different doer (counts against) (+1). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★ · right ✓

Looking back: in chapter VIII, part 1, Toad praised his friends in the cell. Now, in his confession, what does he call himself?

1. «the well-known and popular Mr. Toad» — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
2. «the well-known, popular and most generous Mr. Toad of Toad Hall, Esquire» — score 7
3. «the celebrated and honourable Mr. Toad» — score 7
4. «the wrongly accused, innocent and deeply misunderstood Mr. Toad of the Riverbank» — score 7

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. 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 55, line 12: «Toad confesses: «I am not the simple washerwoman I seem to be! I have no children waiting for me ... I am a toad — the well-known and popular Mr. Toad, a lande…», 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 thing acted on «toad» (+3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 13 · ★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter VII the song in the reeds said «I spring the trap that is set». Who gets Toad out of his trap tonight?

1. The fox in the wood, who guides him — score 1
2. The Mole — no support
3. A passing cart-driver on the road — ← Mova's choice · score 5
4. A kind engine-driver who helps him jump — ✓ the right answer · score 5

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 3 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 55, line 3: «Toad falls on his knees in the coal and confesses who he is; he says he only «borrowed» a motor-car, but the driver calls him a wicked toad — and still decides…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same receiver «toad» (+2); it fills the role the question asks for (+2); the same doer «driver» (+1). The right option, 4, scored 5. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 14 · ★ · wrong ✗

★★★ Count: how many kinds of men are on the chasing engine?

1. Three warders, three policemen and several detectives — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Three — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Four — no support
4. Two — 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 15 · ★ · wrong ✗

★★★ Careful: the pursuers have «the better engine», yet Toad escapes. What makes up for the slower engine?

1. A clever plan: speed in the tunnel, then a quick stop and jump — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The driver's fine knowledge of the track and signals — no support
3. Toad's loud singing that distracts the chasers — score 5
4. The chasing engine breaks down in the tunnel, so the driver stops and Toad leaps into the wood — ← Mova's choice · score 9

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 4 with score 9, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 55, line 4: «The pursuers have the better engine, so the driver races through a long tunnel, brakes hard on the other side, and shouts «Now, jump!»; Toad rolls down the ban…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same place «wood» (+4); it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same doer «toad» (+2). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 16 · ★ · wrong ✗

★★★ The driver gives three reasons for helping. Which is NOT one of them?

1. He once was jailed himself and feels sorry for every fugitive who runs — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He wants Toad to pay him in gold — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. He thinks the warders are cruel and wishes Toad to escape the cell — no support
4. He pities Toad's lonely plight — 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 persons by whom the engine of the prisoner was pursued.

1. Gaolers with keys, policemen with rifles, and inspectors in heavy coats — no support
2. Warders bearing halberds, constables bearing truncheons, detectives in plain clothes, and a crowd of onlookers from the nearby village — no support
3. Warders bearing halberds, constables bearing truncheons, detectives in plain clothes, and the prison governor himself in a carriage — no support
4. Warders bearing halberds, constables bearing truncheons, and detectives in plain clothes — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4

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 55, line 2: «Then the driver hears another engine behind them, and in the moonlight he sees it crowded with warders waving halberds, policemen waving truncheons and detecti…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «warders» (+3); the same thing acted on «halberds» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

State the principal reason adduced by the engine-driver for the pursuers' advantage in speed.

1. Because they have a lighter load and a stronger crew of men — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. That they were running light, possessing in addition the better engine, and a crew of seasoned stokers — no support
3. That their carriages were lighter, their boiler newer, their coal finer, and their drivers more daring than his — no support
4. That they were running light, possessing in addition the better engine — ✓ 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

Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓

Ascertain the stratagem by which the prisoner's escape from the train was effected.

1. Rapid passage through a tunnel, followed by braking and a leap into the adjoining wood — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. A long chase through the fields and a daring swim across the river — no support
3. Deceit of the guard, a bribe, and a sudden swim across the river — no support
4. Rapid passage through a long tunnel, followed by sudden braking, a leap into the adjoining wood, and a long hide-out — 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 ✗

Which of the following statements is consistent with the established facts concerning the prisoner's night in the wood?

1. He took shelter in a hollow tree, was soon found by warders, and slept soundly in a cell until morning — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He lay awake shivering under a bush until the dawn came up — no support
3. He took shelter in a hollow tree beside the river, where a passing fox kept him company all night long — no support
4. He took shelter in a hollow tree and slept soundly until morning — ✓ 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

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