The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 1: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (home at the Rat's, a telling-off, and bad news)

Tests: 4 of 17 right · Exam: 1 of 4 right · Kind: ★★ · Understood: 16 of 21 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 65 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 ✓

Ruby, it's giving (it looks like) drama: «the Rat was well chuffed to see Toad, gave him a hero's welcome.» Put it right.

1. Rat helped him but sent him upstairs at once and later told him off seriously — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. Rat helped him out of the water, then sent him upstairs at once and later told him off seriously and at length about his foolishness — score 5
3. Rat rescued him and then fed him a hot supper with cake and tea gladly — score 5
4. Rat pulled him out and laughed at him all through the evening — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. 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 47, line 8: «The Rat «incautiously» (carelessly) tells Toad that the Mole and the Badger «will be out till luncheon time» — so Toad knows he'll be alone with the Rat.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «rat» (+3); the same receiver «toad» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Why does the Rat say «looking like a gentleman if you can»?

1. Toad, a rich gentleman, looks a shabby, muddy, dripping mess — ✓ the right answer · score 3
2. Toad, who is normally a rich and fashionable gentleman, looks like a wet washerwoman in a dress — ← Mova's choice · score 5
3. Toad always dresses well and has a fine coat — score 0
4. Toad is a gentleman who never wears clothes at all — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). 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 64, line 2: «Then faster, and faster. When they call «Be careful, washerwoman!» Toad loses his head. He pins the driver down with his elbow, goes full speed and shouts who…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+3); the same thing acted on «toad» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★ · wrong ✗

What does the mirror scene show about Toad?

1. Toad is always pleased with his looks and never changes — ← Mova's choice · score 6
2. Even Toad can see how silly he looks — and that changes his mind fast — ✓ the right answer · score 5
3. Toad cares more about his looks than his safety or friends — score 5
4. Toad is vain but he is also clever — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 6, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 26, line 3: «The Mole points to a dark wood on one side. «That's just the Wild Wood,» says the Rat shortly. Badger lives in the middle of it, and nobody bothers him — but t…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «change» (+5); the same doer «mole» (+3). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-2). The right option, 2, scored 5. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Is it TRUE or FALSE? «Toad really agrees with every word the Rat says.»

1. False, Toad says no to everything but then secretly agrees with the Rat later on — ← Mova's choice · score 8
2. Partly false: inside he still thinks «it was fun», but out loud he agrees — ✓ the right answer · score 5
3. Mostly true, since Toad always agrees out loud and inside he also agrees fully — score 5
4. False, Toad argues with the Rat about every single point he raises — score 8

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 8, tied with another option at 8 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 63, line 9: «In other verses Toad says he was the one who told the animals in Noah's Ark «There's land ahead», that the army saluted him instead of the King or Kitchener (a…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «say» (+5); the same doer «toad» (+3). The right option, 2, scored 5. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Josh, no cap (honestly): «Rat's speech was savage, Toad hated him after.» What does the book say?

1. Toad cried all night and never spoke to the Rat again — score 8
2. Toad forgave the Rat at once and thanked him kindly — ← Mova's choice · score 9
3. Toad never minded being told off by his real friends — ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. Toad never forgave the Rat for the speech and always stayed angry with him afterwards — score 9

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 9, tied with another option at 9 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 42, line 17: «The forecourt has a garden-seat, a roller (the Mole hates his ground «kicked up» into little runs), ferns in wire baskets, and plaster statues of «Garibaldi, a…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same thing acted on «ground» (+3); the same doer «mole» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). The right option, 3, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★★ · right ✓

Why is Toad's «quiet, steady, respectable life» promise hard to believe?

1. He has never kept a promise made to any friend — score 0
2. He mentions a new motor-boat idea in the same breath — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. He keeps losing his house and his money — score 4
4. He has just been chased by stoats and promised to behave, but he still talks about cars — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). 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 65, line 4: «Inside, Toad is still muttering «But it was fun, though! Awful fun!», but out loud he says sweetly, «Quite right, Ratty! How sound you always are!» He promises…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «mention» (+3); the same thing acted on «brilliant idea» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★★ · wrong ✗

What would probably have happened if Toad had strolled to Toad Hall without hearing the news?

1. He would have reached home and found his dinner waiting — score 4
2. He would have walked straight into the stoats and weasels — ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. He would have gone home, found the Hall in order, and had a quiet supper with the Rat and Mole nearby — ← Mova's choice · score 9
4. He would have been taken to prison at once by the police — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 3 with score 9, against 4 for the next best. 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 what followed the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+5); the same circumstance (+4). The right option, 2, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★★ · wrong ✗

«Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears.» Why is this a good title for this chapter?

1. Toad's tears burst out suddenly and are over just as fast, like a summer storm — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Toad's tears come suddenly and stop quickly, just like a summer storm that passes over the wood in the afternoon — ← Mova's choice · score 4
3. It is about rain falling and the river flooding the road to the Hall — no support
4. Toad's tears are heavy like the rain that falls in winter every year — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 65, line 5: «The chapter's title, «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears», comes, changed a little, from a line in Tennyson's poem «The Princess»; a summer tempest is a sudde…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «pass» (+3); the same thing acted on «sudden storm» (+1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter I, what other «fads» had Toad taken up before?

1. Fishing and hunting — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Sailing, punting and house-boating — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Chess, cards and singing — no support
4. Cycling, golf and horse-riding — 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 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter VI, Badger told Toad he was «squandering the money your father left you». What does «squandering» mean?

1. Lending — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Hiding — no support
3. Wasting — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Saving — 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 11 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter VIII, in his dungeon, what did Toad call his friends?

1. «O wise old Badger! O clever, intelligent Rat and sensible Mole!» — ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. «O good friends, O kind Rat and clever Badger and Mole!» — ← Mova's choice · score 6
3. «O noble Mole, O wise Rat, and O silly Badger who scolds me!» — no support
4. «O wise old Badger! O clever Rat, and sensible Mole, who saved me from the dungeon and the stoats!» — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 6, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 64, line 4: «Two fields away, a chauffeur and two large country policemen are running after him! Toad runs, calling himself a conceited ass, looks back over his shoulder —…», 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 thing acted on «water rat» (+2); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 1, scored 5. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★★ · right ✓

Looking back: in chapter IX, who stopped the Rat from going south with the Sea Rat?

1. The Mole — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
2. Toad — score 4
3. Badger — score 4
4. The Otter — score 4

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 1 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 47, line 15: «The Rat: «It's best to be on the safe side … I've never heard him ask for a lawyer! If there's nothing really the matter, the doctor will tell him he's an old…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «rat» (+2); it fills the role the question asks for (+2); the same doer «toad» (+1). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 13 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: in chapter VI, the Rat said «Talking to Toad'll never cure him. He'll say anything.» How does this part prove him right?

1. Toad says «Quite right, Ratty!» while still thinking «it was fun» — ✓ the right answer · score 7
2. Toad says yes to the Rat but later steals a motor-car anyway — score 7
3. Toad promises to change but really plans to go motor-boating again — score 7
4. Toad says «Quite right, Ratty!» and then goes off at once to buy a new motor-car with his money — ← Mova's choice · score 9

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 4 with score 9, against 7 for the next best. Its support: lesson 55, line 7: «Thinking of Toad Hall, money and «praise and admiration at the recital of his adventures» (recital = telling), he «began to skip up and down and shout and sing…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+4); the same circumstance (+3); a different action (counts against) (+2). The right option, 1, scored 7. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 14 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Looking back: how is this rescue like the Mole's first day on the river in chapter I?

1. Both times the Rat pulls a wet, sorry animal out of the river and looks after him — ✓ the right answer · score 8
2. Both times the Otter fishes someone out and gives them a meal — score 1
3. In both cases the Mole is lost and the Rat finds him on the bank — no support
4. In both chapters an animal falls in the river, and the Rat rescues him, and they walk home together afterwards — ← Mova's choice · score 9

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 4 with score 9, against 8 for the next best. Its support: lesson 64, line 4: «Two fields away, a chauffeur and two large country policemen are running after him! Toad runs, calling himself a conceited ass, looks back over his shoulder —…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+4); the same circumstance (+3); a different action (counts against) (+2). The right option, 1, scored 8. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 15 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Liam, our kid (my brother), says: «Toad cried 'cos Rat was mean.» Why did Toad really cry?

1. He heard the Rat would not speak to him — ← Mova's choice · score 4
2. He had been caught by the police and sent to a dungeon for his crimes on the road — score 4
3. He heard that the Wild Wooders had taken his home — ✓ the right answer · score 4
4. He heard the Rat had been very cross and that the Wild Wooders had taken Toad Hall and his money — score 4

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 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 61, line 13: «Toad boasts: «Finest business in the whole country», twenty girls working for him, and «Never so happy as when I've got both arms in the wash-tub.» He also cal…», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «toad» (+4). The right option, 3, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 16 · ★★ · wrong ✗

★★★ The Rat lists what has happened to Toad: «handcuffed, imprisoned, starved, chased, terrified out of your life, insulted, jeered at, and ... flung into the water». How many things is that?

1. 8 — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. 0 — no support
3. Twelve things, counting the water as well — ← Mova's choice · score 5
4. Eleven things in all, counting each separately — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 61, line 2: «It is an early summer morning and he has the whole world to himself, but nothing can tell him the way home. He finds a road, then a canal running beside it, an…», 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 «water» (+2). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 17 · ★★ · right ✓

★★★ Toad says «The worst is over» BEFORE he hears the full story. Why is that a trap for the reader?

1. The worst — the attack on Mole and Badger and the loss of the Hall — is still to be told — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The worst is over, so the reader can relax and enjoy the rest — no support
3. The worst — the attack on Mole and Badger and the loss of the Hall — has already happened and Toad will soon recover from it — no support
4. Toad is wrong, and the Hall has already been returned to him — 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 · wrong ✗

Identify the article of attire which the Water Rat directed Toad to remove upon his arrival.

1. The muddy overcoat he had been wearing all along — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The cotton gown formerly belonging to a washerwoman — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. The rusty hat fastened under his chin tightly — no support
4. The cotton gown formerly belonging to a washerwoman and the bonnet — 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 ✗

Ascertain the circumstance that occasioned Toad's ready compliance with the Rat's instructions.

1. A sudden fright at the sound of footsteps — no support
2. The Rat's stern warning about the Stoats and Weasels — no support
3. His beholding his own reflection in the looking-glass — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. His catching sight of himself in the looking-glass, which made him feel ridiculous at last — ← Mova's choice · score 8

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 61, line 2: «It is an early summer morning and he has the whole world to himself, but nothing can tell him the way home. He finds a road, then a canal running beside it, an…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «find» (+5); the same doer «toad» (+3). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

It is given that the Rat expressed displeasure at being thought to «keep company with gaol-birds». Select the response which most accurately characterises his objection to Toad's conduct.

1. That Toad had chosen to become a convict by stealing motor-cars and then boasting about it to everyone he met — ← Mova's choice · score 8
2. That Toad had chosen to become a convict by stealing motor-cars — ✓ the right answer · score 7
3. That Toad dislikes the Rat's cooking and house — score 5
4. That the Rat himself has been a convict in the past — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 8, against 7 for the next best. Its support: lesson 46, line 2: «But the Rat thinks he sees a twinkle in Toad's sorrowful eye. The Badger asks Toad to repeat his promise in front of his friends. A long, long pause… then: «No…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «see» (+5); the same doer «toad» (+3). The right option, 2, scored 7. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

Which of the following statements is consistent with the established facts concerning the intelligence conveyed to Toad at the close of this part?

1. That the Stoats and Weasels had taken possession of Toad Hall — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. That the Badger has been captured by the Weasels — no support
3. That the Stoats and Weasels had taken possession of Toad Hall and were guarding the front gate with clubs — no support
4. That the Wild Wooders had fled and Toad Hall was safe — 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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