was formerly supposed to have a different origin from do of common use. But this theory is now abandoned and do, in the sense 'to suffice,' 'to be suitable,' is held to be the same verb as do, to perform.' 187. The following verbs are practically obsolete: Wit, 'to know,' has a Present wot and Past wist, (used to-day only in affectation of archaic style): I'll find Romeo to comfort you: I wot well where he is'; 'He wist not what to say.' The old gerund to wit now signifies 'namely.' Worth is all that remains of an old verb signifying to be or become. 'Woe worth the chase, woe worth the day' means 'Woe be to the chase and the day.' Quoth is a Past Tense, the Present of which appears in the compound bequeath. It occurs now only in the first and third persons singular and always precedes the pronoun: 'quoth I,' 'quoth he.' QUESTIONS. 1. Explain the term Copula. Make the copula explicit in the sentence The fire burns.' · [The word copula belongs to Logic rather than to Grammar. In Logic, the proposition' Man is mortal' would be described as consisting of two terms and a copula: the term man is the subject, the term mortal is the predicate, and the word is, which connects the two, is the copula. In Grammar, mortal is not the predicate, but together with is it forms the predicate. To bring the sentence 'The fire burns' into the form of the proposition in Logic we must say 'The fire is burning.' We have then made the copula explicit.] 2. Give in outline the history of the Auxiliary Verbs. Discuss the following constructions : 3. Make sentences in which the word have is used (a) as a transitive verb in the indicative mood, (b) as a transitive verb in the subjunctive, (c) as an auxiliary. W. E. G. 12 4. Conjugate the verbs can, shall, will, ought, must, and show how the places of the missing forms are supplied. [Think, e.g., how we express ourselves instead of saying, 'I shall not can go,' 'They will must stop.'] 5. Write short notes on the following italicised words:-'He must go.'-'He need not go.'-'He dare not go.'-' Methinks.'-‘I wis.'— 'This will never do.'-'So mote it be.' [I wis is not a verb at all, but an adverb ywis, 'truly,' where y represents an older form ge, as in yclept; compare German gewiss, 'certainly.' Mote is the subjunctive of mot, 'I can, I may,' (but of different origin from the verb may,) from which must was formed as a past tense, though used also as a present.] 6. Write short notes on the following italicised verbal forms :'How do you do?'—‘I do you to wit.'-'Woe worth the day!'-'Seeing is believing.'-'Ile that hath ears to hear, let him hear.' [In 'How do you do?' the first do is the auxiliary. The second is now considered to be do, Latin facere, not do, Latin valere, as was once supposed. The expression resembles the Old French equivalent, Comment le faites vous? literally, 'How do you make it?' and the German Was machen Sie? literally, 'What make you?' I do you to wit means 'I cause you to know.'] 7. As English verbs possess no inflexions to form the future tense, how are the ideas of simple futurity, of intention, and of compulsion respectively expressed? 8. Define mood, tense, auxiliary verb. Write two sentences, each containing a verb in the subjunctive mood. Explain the meaning of the word perfect as applied to tense. Distinguish the various uses of do as an auxiliary verb. 9. Form sentences which illustrate the use of will and shall as Notional Verbs, and specify in each instance the notion which the verb conveys. [Intention: 'I will be obeyed.' 'Will you come out?' 'He said he would not pay.' Command: 'Thou shalt not steal.' 'You should speak respectfully.' 'The doctor said she should take more exercise.' Promise: You shall be told at once.' 'He shall apologise.' Threat: 'Idle boys shall be kept in.' 'The master told the idle boys that they should be kept in.'] 179 CHAPTER XVIII. ADVERBS. 188. An Adverb is a word which modifies the meaning of a verb, adjective, or other adverb. Verbs usually indicate an action, and this action may be performed in various ways and in different circumstances. These variations in the conditions under which the action takes place are expressed by adverbs. Thus the action asserted in the sentence 'He bowled' is described as limited or modified, as regards the time when it occurred, if I say 'yesterday'; as regards the place, if I say 'here'; as regards the manner, if I say 'badly.' The vagueness of the statement 'He bowled' has been in large measure removed when I say 'Yesterday he bowled here badly.' Just as adjectives limit the application of nouns to things, so adverbs limit the application of verbs to actions. Just as the words 'clever boy' are applicable to fewer objects than the word 'boy,' so the words 'bowled yesterday' are applicable to fewer actions than the word 'bowled.' Again, Adjectives denote attributes, and these attributes are such as, in many instances, but by no means in all, vary in degree. One way of indicating this variation is by comparison: another is by the use of adverbs which denote degree. If the reader will refer to the chapter on the Inflexion of Adjectives, he will see that the Demonstrative Adjectives, eg. this, that, first, second, do not admit of Comparison at all; that the same thing is true of the definite Quantitative Adjectives, like none, both, and the Cardinal. Numerals; and that even of the Qualitative Adjectives there are several which cannot be compared. Hence it is only to some adjectives that adverbs can be applied. Moreover it is only some adverbs which are applicable to adjectives. Adverbs of time, place, manner, cannot be used to qualify adjectives, though they qualify verbs. The same remarks apply to the qualification of adverbs by other adverbs. We can say 'very bad,' 'very badly,' but there is no meaning in saying 'here bad,' 'hither badly,' 'anyhow bad,' 'then badly,' for though these words may possibly occur together in sentences, reflexion will show that in such cases it is the verb, and not the adjective or adverb, which is modified. 189. We may classify Adverbs on three different principles. I. As Simple and Conjunctive. Most adverbs are simple. They contain a meaning in themselves: 'He thinks so now,' 'I live here,' 'We were greatly pleased.' A few however have a meaning only when they are taken in connexion with another clause. 'He came when,' 'I waited while,' 'They are sitting where,' are meaningless assertions until the sentences are completed: 'He came when I called,' 'I waited while he wrote a letter,' 'They are sitting where we left them.' These adverbs have the force of conjunctions in joining clauses together. Hence they are called Conjunctive Adverbs. The reader will observe that in possessing this connecting force they resemble the so-called relative pronouns. In 'I know who it is,' the clauses 'I know,' 'it is,' are united by the relative pronoun who in 'I know where it is,' they are united by the conjunctive adverb where. : 190. II. I. 2. Time Place { According to their Meaning. when? now, to-day, then, yesterday, soon, to-morrow how long? always, ever how often? twice, yearly, rarely where? here, near, below 3. Degree, or Quantity how much? 4. Manner, or Quality how? 5. Certainty 6. Reason and Consequence scarcely, quite, little, exactly well, ill, and adverbs in -ly certainly, not, perhaps why, therefore, thus 191. Yes and No. What are we to call the words Yes and No? They are usually classed as Adverbs of Affirmation and Negation, or, to use the term employed in our table, Adverbs of Certainty. Yet they are not exactly adverbs, for we cannot use them to modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs: we cannot say 'He yes did it,' 'He is yes good,' 'He acted yes wisely.' In some respects they resemble Interjections, but they are not, like them, the expression of a sudden feeling. They are really equivalent to sentences: 'Did he say so?' 'Yes,'-that is, 'He said so': 'No,'—that is, ' He did not say so.' As they are certainly words, we must either make them a new Part of Speech, which seems undesirable, or include them with Adverbs or with Interjections, though different from both. The student will of course understand that no, meaning none, is an adjective: no money,' 'no friends.' 6 III. According to their Origin or Mode of Formation. The following are the principal modes in which Adverbs are formed: |